Elias Pettersson Defrauded By Convicted Swedish Real Estate Broker

Elias Pettersson has a lot on his mind right now with a hockey season that’s not going particularly well – either for himself or the Vancouver Canucks – an apparent feud with teammate J.T. Miller that’s getting more than its share of media coverage and accompanying rumors that one or both players might be traded.

Back home in Sweden, he’s also had an ongoing real-estate nightmare with a shady broker who’s now in prison, according to several Swedish media sources. As a result, Pettersson has lost the deposit on the luxury villa north of Stockholm.

The ordeal apparently began two years ago when Pettersson found a home in the suburb of Danderyd worth 26 million Swedish crowns (approximately $2.4 million US) and put down a deposit worth about 10 percent of the sale price. However, he soon came to regret his purchase.

“It turned out that the house had many flaws that needed to be fixed,” Elias’ father Torbjörn Pettersson told Sundsvalls Tidning, a regional newspaper.

Pettersson sued the broker and was able to have the mortgage contract cancelled, but he hasn’t had any luck collecting the deposit and it seems unlikely that he ever will. Last year, the broker was sentenced to six years in prison for fraud in cases that didn’t include Pettersson’s.

“The money’s gone – just forget about it and move on,” the elder Pettersson said.

After posting 102 and 89 points in each of the past two seasons and never fewer than 68 points over a full season in his NHL career, Pettersson has only 30 points in 40 games this season. Canucks fans have struggled to find an explanation, either physical or psychological, for Pettersson’s steep decline in offensive production since February of 2024. 

And while $240,000 US might not seem significant to someone making $11.6 million US per year, one wonders if the stress from the whole episode is just one more thing weighing on his mind.