Canucks offered Pettersson $96 million contract before the season: report

The Vancouver Canucks reportedly made an offer to Elias Pettersson that would have been the richest contract signed in franchise history.

NHL insider David Pagnotta from The Fourth Period reports that a “well-placed source tied to the club” informed him that the Canucks made an eight-year contract offer to Pettersson worth $12 million per season at the start of the 2023-24 season.

Pagnotta said that the contract hasn’t been rejected and that Pettersson preferred to focus on the season.

That lines up with what Pettersson said in a famed Swedish boat interview with Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman last summer.

“I’m not in a rush to sign. I got one more year there and I don’t want to rush into anything,” Pettersson said last August.

“I still don’t know myself if it’s going to be short-term or long-term. It’s gonna be probably my biggest contract so far and so I don’t want to stress anything,” Pettersson added. “All summer I’m just trying to prepare myself as much as possible with training, trying to gain a little bit of weight, some muscles, and yeah, especially get off to a good start with a team.”

The hope among Canucks fans is that the success of this season will give Pettersson the confidence to re-sign with the team long-term.

Only Auston Matthews ($13.25M), Nathan MacKinnon ($12.6M), and Connor McDavid ($12.5M) have signed contracts paying them more than $12 million per season.

Pettersson’s countryman, William Nylander, signed an eight-year contract worth $11.5 million per season with the Toronto Maple Leafs last month.

With 73 points in 58 games, Pettersson is on pace to surpass his career-best season in 2022-23, when he scored 102 points. The 25-year-old centre has played all six of his NHL seasons with the Canucks, and is set to become a restricted free agent this summer. He can become an unrestricted free agent as soon as July 1, 2025.

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