Trevor Linden says Canucks former GM didn't want Elias Pettersson: "If Jim (Benning) had his choice, he probably would've taken a different player"

The Vancouver Canucks have been one of the best teams to start the season. And while a lot of their success has been due to the play of goalie Thatcher Demko and captain Quinn Hughes, the offensive outburst coming from Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser and J.T. Miller should not be discounted.

Boeser currently leads the team with 10 goals in 12 games. Miller, meanwhile, has 18 points. But it's been Pettersson, who had a career-best 39 goals and 102 points last season, who is really driving the offence with six goals and 21 points.

Imagine what this team would have looked like had the Canucks pulled the trigger on a Boeser trade. Or a Miller trade.

Further to that, imagine what this team would look like had Vancouver not selected Pettersson with the fifth-overall pick in the 2017 NHL Entry Draft.

According to Canucks former president Trevor Linden, the latter was a real possibility.

"Jim (Benning) wasn't sold," Linden told Canucks Central radio on Sportsnet 650, referencing the team's former general manager. "If Jim had his choice, he probably would have taken a different player."

As for who Benning might have selected, Linden wouldn't divulge. But it is worth noting that Cody Glass went sixth overall, with Lias Anderson, Casey Mittelstadt, Michael Rasmussen and Owen Tippett rounding out the top-10.