‘I Have His Back, He Has Mine’: On The Friendship Between Canucks Forwards Brock Boeser And Elias Pettersson

Brock Boeser’s first memory of Elias Pettersson stands out for more than just one reason. 

Less than two weeks after being selected fifth-overall by the Vancouver Canucks in the 2017 NHL Draft, Pettersson took part in his first Vancouver Development Camp alongside 35 of the team’s other emerging prospects. 

Boeser was one of those 35. While this wasn’t his first Development Camp with the Canucks, having been drafted in 2015 and taken part in the team’s camps since then, it was his first with Pettersson.  

“I remember seeing him on the ice at camp, and I was watching practice a little bit — I wasn’t out there with him — and I saw him just dominating out there. I’m like, ‘Holy crap! Look at this guy. He’s unbelievable’,” Boeser told The Hockey News when reflecting on his and Pettersson’s friendship. 

“We needed a guy like that to come into our organization, and I got to play with him that year, and it was just amazing, what he can do on the ice,” the forward added.  

Pettersson and Boeser are two of three players who attended that Development Camp and are still with the organization, the other being Guillaume Brisebois (Thatcher Demko was part of the club but did not take part in this particular camp). The duo’s friendship was prevalent during the early stages of their careers and continues to test the tides of time even now. 

Their friendship, both players agreed, developed during Pettersson’s first year in the NHL — a 2018–19 season that saw him become just the second player in franchise history to win the Calder Memorial Trophy, given to the league’s most standout rookie. While he scored 28 goals and 38 points in 71 games on the ice, off it, his nights were spent working on his English with none-other than his most frequent linemate. 

“I was very bad at English the first time we [he and Boeser] met, during my first development camp, but it got better the year after, or the season after, which was my rookie season. He won’t be shy to tell you my English sucked back then,” Pettersson said with a grin.  

“He’s such a quiet guy, learning English. We were roommates on the road, and he always was asking me how to say stuff and whatever,” Boeser echoed. “He’s come a long way in that.”  

The two were road-roommates during Pettersson’s rookie season, which is where a good chunk of that friendship-development occurred. Often, Pettersson said, the two would “just hang out” and order some Boeser-requested chocolate-chip cookies and milk. 

“He always liked cookies and milk, and I’m not gonna say no to that.” 

It’s those kinds of memories that, for Pettersson, make up the early stages of their friendship. Just two young players hanging out, eating cookies, and, as he puts it, “living the dream.”  

“You don’t think about it back then, but if you look back at it, it was just fond memories. Two young dumb kids, pretty much just playing hockey, living the dream.” 

That rookie season of Pettersson’s was nearly 10 years ago. Both Pettersson and Boeser have remained with the Canucks ever since — though things have changed drastically from those easy cookie-sharing, English-learning days. From the highs of a Division-Final Game 7, to the beginning stages of a new rebuild, the two friends have been through a lot together. 

“He’s been here every year I’ve been here, and he’s my longest friend on the team,” said Pettersson. “We’ve pretty much grown up in our 20s together, and also a very good friend.” 

That lengthy history may be what’s urged Canucks Head Coach Manny Malhotra, who has known them both since that very rookie season, to play them on the same line for the past eight games. Strong on-ice chemistry doesn’t often develop over a short period of time — and in the case of Pettersson and Boeser, this is a formula that’s been experimented on through the past nine seasons.  

“There’s been a number of games where their offensive touches and their ability to spend time in the O-zone has paid dividends,” he explained after Thursday’s practice. “They’ve done a good job of swaying things back in our favour. I think it’s just the chemistry that they’ve had over the past couple weeks is keeping them together.” 

Playing together, regardless of whether they’re on the same line or not, has given the two cues as to how the other functions while play is in motion, Pettersson noted.  

“I know what he’s good at, and the reverse, so just trying to set him up so he can use his shots, and [I] always know where he is on the ice, so just trying to use that and try to score some goals.” 

This chemistry comes at a time when the Canucks are arguably in the most difficult stages of a rebuild — the early years in which it feels like nothing is going in their direction. One of the bright spots in this time has been the play of Pettersson, who is currently averaging a point per game. 

Pettersson’s play has marked a noticeable change from previous seasons, in which he looked less engaged, faltering in the offensive production department as a result. The case of whether he is truly ‘back’ or not has been heavily debated by fans and media alike. 

Boeser’s answer to the debate falls in line with the way their friendship has gone throughout the course of nearly 10 years — in nothing but support. 

“I know it’s been a couple of rough years for him, but this year you can see the confidence he has, and the way he’s making plays on the ice, and you can just see that he has that old swag again. He’s back to himself, and I’m really happy that he’s doing that.” 

Pettersson and Boeser’s friendship is one that was built on language lessons, sharing cookies, and supporting one-another through everything. 

Nearly 10 years later, after weathering difficult storms, that mutual support remains.  

“I have his back, he has mine,” Pettersson said. “We’ve always played together here. So the bond goes a long way.”

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