3. The Pass(es) to Boeser
I had to cheat a little, because there are two passes that need to be on this list. The first showed shades of Henrik Sedin, and came on an extremely memorable five-point night for Pettersson (again, more on that later).
Over the course of his 100 games in the NHL, Pettersson has struck up an amiable friendship with teammate Brock Boeser. As the late Jason Botchford wrote about last season, the two’s friendship means a lot to Boeser, but the two best of friends have found some serious chemistry on the ice in the meantime.
Pettersson first set up Boeser for a bank pass goal that had everyone, including the Colorado Avalanche broadcast team, going berserk.
The next out of this world pass Pettersson made to his good pal Boeser was in a game against the Vegas Golden Knights. Pettersson battles hard to get the puck back, gets hit to the ice, but somehow has the presence of mind to sweep the puck back to the slot, where Boeser was waiting:
This goal is known as the “holy ” goal, based on Boeser’s reaction while he celebrates the goal with Pettersson. “I said a lot of F-words after that one. I was just, well, shocked. It was so sick. He definitely wants to be one of the best players in the NHL. I could sense that right away. You could just feel his confidence.” Boeser told the Athletic last season.
There are certainly many more jaw-dropping passes to come, but these two from his rookie campaign are ones that fans will never forget.