Canucks Recap: Three stars of the past week (Feb 27th – Mar 6th)

2. Elias Pettersson and Brock Boeser

Elias Pettersson and Brock Boeser continue to carry the offensive production for the Canucks.

Let’s take a look at Boeser first.

There’s no question that the 24-year-old has been the Canucks’ most lethal forward for the first half of the season. He currently leads the team with 13 goals and 28 points, including another three-point performance to finish off the week, and he sits eighth in league scoring. He has drastically improved upon his skating and defensive contributions, and he continues to terrorize opponents with his accurate shot.

Pettersson hasn’t been a slouch either.

After a quiet and underwhelming start to the season, where he only registered one point in his first six games, the former fifth overall pick has bounced back in a massive way.

Pettersson has only been held off the scoresheet five times in the last 20 games, and is currently producing at exactly a point-per-game pace. He sits third on the team list for most points, right behind Boeser and stud blueliner Quinn Hughes, and he has erased the minus rating that he carried for most of the season.

What’s even more encouraging? It appears that neither player will be slowing down anytime soon.

The duo combined for two goals, four assists and seven shots during the back-to-back set against the Jets, and have recorded 12 points while on the man advantage this season.

More importantly, Boeser and Pettersson have rediscovered their elite form on the top line. This undeniable chemistry was on full display on Tuesday night, with Boeser entering the offensive zone with speed and winning the corner forecheck before peeking over his shoulder and finding Pettersson in the slot for an absolute dart.

Some would make a case that we should’ve included the entire Lotto Line in this second-star selection (and let’s be real, there’s clearly no criteria in this weekly piece so it theoretically could’ve happened), but it’s important to look past the point totals.

Heading into Thursday’s tilt against the Maple Leafs, J.T. Miller, who previously found himself on the top line, was tied with Pettersson for point totals this year, but also posted a minus-five rating and 14 PIM. These blemishes were supported by his consistently inconsistent play-making abilities, his streaky production values, and his uninspired, low-effort shifts.

Plus, it’s tough to highlight a player who was demoted to the third line just under a week ago.

It should be noted that Miller put up one of his best performances of the year on Saturday night, matching Boeser’s three-point performance with one of his own to propel himself to second on the scoring chart. He looked fantastic in the number one centre role due to the absence of Pettersson, winning the match-up against John Tavares, but that’s only one game.

When the Lotto Line is at full strength, Miller has been somewhat invisible.

Canucks coaching staff, management and fans have set high expectations for Miller, and he’ll need to be much, much more consistent to land his own spot on this list, especially when Pettersson comes back from injury.

Regardless of Miller’s play over the past few weeks, Boeser and Pettersson continue to carry the team on their backs, and both stars will need to do so for the rest of the year before this season really spirals out of control for them.