Welcome Matt: Should Canucks worry about getting Tkachuk'd?
Vancouver Canucks fans are hoping Elias Pettersson doesn’t get any ideas.
That’s because Jack Eichel, who asked for a trade last season, and Matthew Tkachuk, who let his previous team know he wouldn’t be re-signing, have made the Stanley Cup Final in the first full seasons in those greener pastures.
They enter the NHL’s showcase as the best skaters on their respective teams, and two of the favourites to win the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
As the Canucks lurch from season to season missing on their stated goal to simply be a playoff team, one wonders whether Pettersson is taking note of a growing trend amongst professional athletes, even hockey players. While basketball stars have been dictating where they’ll play going back to LeBron’s Decision, hockey players are now exerting power and influence over their own careers.
Eichel had a miserable time losing in Buffalo, didn’t like how the Sabres handled his neck injury, and forced a trade outta town, landing with the Vegas Golden Knights.
Tkachuk let former Flames GM Brad Treliving know he wouldn’t be extending in Calgary, and was traded to the Panthers shortly thereafter. He re-signed in Florida, a max eight-year deal with a no-move clause, meaning Tkachuk is staying in the Sunshine State as long as he wants.
And yet, they are not alone.
Winnipeg centre Pierre-Luc Dubois, who has already forced his way out of Columbus, reportedly wants to play for the Montreal Canadiens and only the Montreal Canadiens. Dubois’ unflinching single-track has Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman saying he’s “95 per cent” sure the French-Canadian forward is going to wind up in his home province, perhaps as early as this summer where he’s a restricted free agent and unwilling to extend long-term with the Jets.
Then there’s Patrick Kane. The longtime Blackhawks winger chafed when the New York Rangers acquired Vladimir Tarasenko from the St. Louis Blues in February.
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Kane wanted to be dealt to the Rangers and only the Rangers. He wound up getting his wish, as New York acquired him nearly three weeks later.
Kane was empowered by a no-move clause that tied Chicago’s hands and let him control his destination. But that he spoke so publicly about his disappointment in not being Broadway-bound after the Tarasenko deal was new territory for the NHL.
Hockey’s culture has traditionally suppressed individuality and cut-down tall poppies. Players who are too focused on their own careers get labelled selfish.
But that’s changing with the times and with greater sports trends. The ability to exert more control over one’s career is a function of star players knowing that their teams need them more than they need their teams.
Are you worried that Elias Pettersson may one day demand a trade? #Canucks
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Pettersson has already fired a distant warning shot in the summer of 2021 when he told a Swedish reporter that he wants to play for a team that has a chance to go far in the playoffs every year.
Since that statement, Pettersson has signed a bridge deal, missed the playoffs twice, and played for three coaches. He’s eligible for an extension this summer and the Canucks would like his name on a long-term contract. If he signs for less than the maximum of eight years, I’m sure some will wonder about his commitment to the Canucks.
But regardless of the length of the deal, as Eichel and Tkachuk have proven, star players hold all the cards and can extract themselves from teams and cities.
Which makes this next year huge for the Canucks and their ability to convince Petey that they’re worth sticking with.