The Vancouver Canucks are making major roster renovations this summer, including hiring a new GM and coach. But new GM Ryan Johnson appears to be setting the stage for a blockbuster trade involving star center Elias Pettersson. Will Johnson pull the trigger on a Pettersson deal?
The Vancouver Canucks are transitioning from one era to another this summer.
New Canucks GM Ryan Johnson is quickly making his mark on the franchise, hiring a new coach in Manny Malhotra and trading veteran defenseman Marcus Pettersson and left winger Nils Hoglander in separate deals.
In addition, Johnson signed a few veterans – winger Brendan Gallagher as well as defensemen Jamie Oleksiak and Luke Schenn – to stabilize the organization. But the biggest chip Johnson has right now is star center Elias Pettersson, a player who has been surrounded by trade speculation for months.
In a new interview with Sportsnet, Johnson sounded very much like a GM who was preparing Pettersson to be traded.
“(Elias Pettersson) and I have had a very open dialogue since I’ve come on board — a real sense of just being honest without judgment,” Johnson said. “I have a ton of respect for ‘Petey’, his journey, and how he’s gotten to this point. It’s not just ‘Petey’, but with every player in our group, I have to consider what’s best for the organization. I’ve wanted to make sure there’s a clear dialogue, clear honesty... while trying to find solutions that benefit the player and the hockey club at the same time.”
Does that sound like someone who intends to keep his star player? It doesn’t to this writer. It would’ve been easy for Johnson to come out fiercely and be extremely vocal in stating he intends to keep Pettersson for the long term. But Johnson didn’t do that. So the trade rumors surrounding Pettersson won’t be going away anytime soon.
Johnson was cagey about it, but the talk of “being honest without judgement” indicates his frank approach to deciding Pettersson’s future in Vancouver. There’s no guarantee Johnson is going to deal Pettersson, but as the organization begins turning the page, they’re going to be trading many of their veteran players.
Dealing Marcus Pettersson to the New York Rangers didn’t make Vancouver better – at least, in the short term. Sending Hoglander to the Nashville Predators also weakened the Canucks. But Vancouver is now on a different competitive trajectory than it was when its veterans made significant commitments to the franchise. Johnson’s task is to untangle the Canucks from their major contracts as the organization pivots into a new direction.
Thus, it’s clear why Johnson is willing to listen to bids on Elias Pettersson, so long as those bids are legitimate hockey trades. However, Johnson made it clear he’s not going to put together a straight-ahead salary dump deal involving Pettersson. It has to be a trade that puts Vancouver on better footing as they build toward a better future.
Don’t get us wrong: Johnson can and should do his best to create as much salary cap space as possible in any Pettersson trade. As it stands, the Canucks have $17.8 million in cap space, and Pettersson’s $11.6-million annual salary runs for the next six seasons. So freeing themselves from that commitment will give Johnson the flexibility he needs to put together his own vision for the team. But he’s not going to give Elias Pettersson away. That much is clear.
That said, it’s hard to envision Pettersson being a Canuck when training camp rolls around in the fall. Pettersson isn’t the only Vancouver veteran who is likely to be moved; star goalie Thatcher Demko and star forwards Jake DeBrusk and Brock Boeser are also likely to be traded, as they’re all at least 29 years old. That’s too old to be part of the Canucks when their new core is going to be at its peak.
And the same goes for the 27-year-old Elias Pettersson. It’s not solely his fault that Vancouver is where they are, but Petterson does have to own some of the poor results. But a fresh start with a new organization is likely the best route for Pettersson as an individual and for the Canucks as an organization.
Johnson now has full license to deal Elias Pettersson, and he must hit a home run in any Pettersson trade. Pettersson can have a positive impact on any number of teams, and although he has a full no-trade clause, Pettersson can work with Johnson to engineer a deal that helps everyone involved.
It’s our opinion that it’s time for Pettersson, DeBrusk, Boeser and Demko to move on. If the Canucks are to move in a different direction, they have to cut ties with their old foundation. And that means Johnson can’t shrink from the challenge. He has to find the best trade packages for his veterans and start anew with a different core.
He appears ready, willing and able to do that – starting with Elias Pettersson.
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