In the latest edition of 31 Thoughts, Elliotte Friedman centres the discussion around how we see NHL awards and has a lot to say about Elias Pettersson. We also have news on a pair of Vancouver Canucks defencemen.
In the past, the Vancouver Canucks had few reasons to be featured on 31 Thoughts. It reflected the lack of interest in the team from an outside perspective. Granted, this organization needs to work a little harder to be recognized out East, but we are seeing differences in coverage this year compared to last year.
With that said, the Canucks have been featured in a notable way by Elliotte Friedman, one of the few people in Toronto that are more than aware of Canucks fans. He may not have a complete grasp of the market (thinking of the time when he blamed the fans/media for making Jim Benning’s job too hard), but he is one of the premium sources of hockey information.
Before we get to the big story on Elias Pettersson, Friedman had something interesting to say about Michael Del Zotto. It’s obvious that he isn’t happy being a healthy scratch. Maybe if he was a better defenceman, that wouldn’t be a problem. Regardless, he wants to play. I was surprised to hear that teams are interested, but if they are at the deadline, do it. A 7th round pick is better than nothing, which is roughly what he should be worth right now.
We also heard news about Quinn Hughes. During the World Juniors, Rick Dhaliwal tweeted out that the Canucks were going to try and sign Hughes after the tournament, but hastily deleted it after. According to Friedman, the Canucks were thinking about doing that, but nothing ever materialized. They had a serious interesting in doing it, but will wait for his season to end in Michigan.
And honestly, that’s fine. It will be a miracle for Michigan to come out of their division and I’m not sure if the selection committee would add the Wolverines to the championship tournament. So, assuming things shake out that way, Canucks fans could see Hughes wearing the blue and green by mid to late March.
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All about Elias Pettersson
So, Friedman was discussing NHL awards. He was talking about a player missing games can affect their chances at the Calder. Friedman always used games played to make his decision for his vote and Pettersson will miss more than 10 this season. However, he has 42 points and the next closest player has 25. It’s not even close and Pettersson is expected to return in two weeks at the most.
It is an intriguing conversation, because those who are voting may have to reconsider the “rules” they have made for themselves. Like making the playoffs to get a Hart vote. Although, it’s nice to see some people say they would give a Hart vote for Pettersson, even if the caveat is Vancouver making the playoffs. Although, by that standard, if a certain top five player in Edmonton makes the playoffs, he will likely pick up every vote.
As other teams have played during the team’s days off, Vancouver has fallen to 10th in the West and 20th overall. If we are looking at points percentages, it’s 11th and 22nd respectively. To make matters worse, teams still have games in hand on the Canucks and things may continue to spiral without Pettersson in the lineup.
Finally, Friedman marveled at the things Pettersson is doing out there. The pass that he blocked in Montreal was brilliant and was just a sample of incredible things Pettersson has done this season. I also liked how he contrasted the way people talk about him with Tiger Woods. Tiger’s peers were sick of hearing him, but right now, people can’t get enough of Elias Pettersson.
It truly is different from how Brock Boeser was covered last year. Boeser was an exciting rookie who might win the Calder. Pettersson is being nominated for the Hart, is changing the chatter around Vancouver and has convinced more people that this is a playoff team. Last year, it was “Boeser is good, but the Canucks still suck.” Now it’s, “Pettersson is the missing piece this team needs to make the playoffs.”
I don’t agree that this is a playoff team, but this is the feeling we are getting from the outside looking in. For all we know, the team could finish in that 22nd to 24th overall range. It’s certainly an improvement from last season, just not by much.
Regardless, I am glad that Pettersson is getting the kind of coverage we saw from Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews in their rookie seasons. He deserves that kind of recognition and has put everyone in the NHL on notice.