7 fun facts about new Canucks defenceman Marcus Pettersson
Like it or not, a new era has begun for the Vancouver Canucks.
On Sunday night against the Detroit Red Wings, Filip Chytil, Drew O’Connor, and Marcus Pettersson all made their debuts in Canucks colours. This was the first time since March 5, 1991, that three Canucks made their debut with the club in a non-season-opening game.
It was clear specifically from Pettersson’s debut that he was going to play a major role in this hockey team. Of course, his usage was inflated on Sunday due to the absence of Quinn Hughes, but the defender still ended up playing close to 26 minutes during his first game with the Canucks.
Here are seven things you should know about the new Canucks defenceman.
1. Nicknamed “Dragon”
Pettersson was commonly referred to as “Petey” by his teammates in Pittsburgh. That could be an issue in Vancouver; however, fellow new Canuck O’Connor tried to help solve the riddle.
āI actually donāt know if he likes it, but they call him āDragon,āā OāConnor said on Sunday.
O’Connor told reporters that he didn’t know where the nickname came from. That’s probably because it has somehow followed Pettersson around for more than half his life.
Apparently, he picked up the nickname as a teenager in Sweden when playing basketball.
“A couple of guys still call me that, like Casey [DeSmith] calls me that,” Pettersson said in a 2022 interview. “It’s something that travels and it’s not really a basketball nickname, but it’s got a basketball background.”
2. Scared of flying
No one tell Pettersson that he’s about to be in the air much more with the Canucks.
While the Canucks travel schedule has improved over the years, the Penguins actually have the NHL’s lightest travel schedule this season.
Now in his eighth NHL season, Pettersson should be used to flying, but it’s not one of his favourite things to do.
“Iāve known him for a long time, heās always been scared of flying,” Pettersson’s former teammate Sebastian Aho said.
For Pettersson’s bachelor party, Aho and others took the lanky defenceman on an aerobatic plane ride.
“He said, okay — then started hyperventilating a little bit,” Rickard Rakell explained. “He ended up doing it, and said that he actually enjoyed it.ā
āI think it originates from me being scared of heights,ā Pettersson told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
3. Canucks tried to acquire Pettersson before
This reportedly wasn’t the first time that Canucks president Jim Rutherford, who absolutely loves Pettersson, has tried to bring the defender to Vancouver.
At the 2023 trade deadline, Miller was nearly dealt to the Penguins. While the terms of the deal were never fully disclosed, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported that the Canucks nearly acquired Pettersson in that deal.
4. Praised by Sidney Crosby for leadership
There isn’t a better leader in the NHL than Sidney Crosby.
The 20-year NHL veteran has led the Penguins to three Stanley Cups. His compliments hold more cache than your average NHLer.
So, the man known as Dragon has to feel pretty good about Crosby going out of his way to text Tocchet about Pettersson’s leadership.
“I know he’s well-liked, and he’s a leader,” Tocchet told the media. “Sid told me he’s a big leader in there.”
You can see in videos posted by the Penguins that Pettersson is vocal in the dressing room.
5. Not afraid to drop the gloves
Pettersson is listed at 6-foot-5 and 174 pounds. Clearly, he isn’t the thickest nor the most built guy in the NHL.
That hasn’t stopped him from standing up for teammates, no matter who the opponent is.
Pettersson has 10 career fights and some of the guys he fought are among the league’s toughest customers. That includes Darnell Nurse, former Canuck Jonah Gadjovich, Philadelphia Flyers enforcer Nic Deslauries, and Washington Capitals forward Tom Wilson.
“I didn’t die, so that’s a plus,” Pettersson joked when being asked about his fight with Wilson.
“I don’t want him to fight, but he’s actually stuck up for his teammates,” Tocchet said. “He’s fought some of the biggest guys in the league. You got to give a guy like that a lot of credit.”
6. Bieksa was once his defence partner
Pettersson got help learning the tools of the trade from Kevin Bieksa when he broke into the league.Ā Playing his first NHL game February 15, 2018, Pettersson was a 22-year-old rookie with the Anaheim Ducks.
Bieksa, meanwhile, was in the last year his NHL career at age 36.
They were briefly paired together, before a hand injury limited Bieksa down the stretch.
7. He gets hit a lot
Not only is Pettersson unafraid to fight, but he’s also fearless when taking a hit to make a play.
Over the last three seasons, no one has taken more hits than Pettersson, who’s been hit 508 times. He’s the only player that’s taken more than 500 hits since the beginning of 2022-23.
While that could be a concern for a defender as slight as Pettersson, he has been relatively durable throughout his NHL career. And, the underlying numbers suggest that he’s been successful in taking hits to move the puck up the ice.
Not too too concerned about the defensive drop off given the environment he's in this season; he's been incentivized to take a lot of risks that he probably won't in Vancouver. He's generally been a strong two-way play-driver.
— JFresh (@JFreshHockey) February 1, 2025