7 teams that have been linked to Vancouver Canucks' Elias Pettersson and what they could offer
Elias Pettersson was once the future face of the franchise.
Now, he might be the guy who truly signals that the Vancouver Canucks are in a rebuild, if the team does trade him.
It’s been nearly 24 months since Pettersson scored 13 goals in 14 games back in January of 2024.
Since then, he has 36 goals in his last 151 games.
Remember, this is a player who scored 39 goals during the 2022-23 season, a year in which he registered 102 points.
At this point, the one thing that might save him is a change of scenery.
Of course, Pettersson holds the cards with his no-move clause, but it’s certainly plausible that he would also entertain the idea of playing elsewhere based on how things have unfolded in Vancouver.
If he does get moved, here are some teams that have been linked to him.
1. Carolina Hurricanes
The Carolina Hurricanes’ longtime and current rumoured interest in Pettersson makes a ton of sense.
This is a franchise that hasn’t been able to get over the playoff hump. They’ve also shown a willingness to make bold moves, one of which was nearly trading for Pettersson back in 2024.
Carolina also has an additional first-round pick in the 2028 draft, courtesy of Dallas, and a relatively strong prospect pool.
The Canucks could also juice a Pettersson-to-Carolina return by taking on the contract of struggling centre Jesperi Kotkaniemi, who has five years remaining on his $4.82 million annual cap hit.
2. Detroit Red Wings
Like Carolina, the Detroit Red Wings are one of the few playoff teams with the cap space to trade for Pettersson. Frank Seravalli recently mentioned the Wings as a team interested in his services.
We also learned from Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman that the Red Wings backed out of a Quinn Hughes trade because they couldn’t sign him to an extension.
Hey, at least there’s cost certainty with Pettersson.
If the Canucks could get a first-round pick, a prospect, and a roster player back for Pettersson, as some have suggested, could a trade be as simple as Detroit’s first-round pick, one of Nate Danielson or Marco Kasper, and perhaps a roster player like Surrey, B.C.’s Michael Rasmussen?
3. Los Angeles Kings
Los Angeles Kings franchise icon Anze Kopitar is in his final NHL season.
And while Pettersson isn’t prime-Kopitar, he’s currently better than the 38-year-old version of the Kings legend.
Pettersson’s wife, Katelyn, also spent 13 years living in Los Angeles.
If the Kings do become a top suitor, it’s easier to envision this deal in the offseason, when Kopitar’s $7 million cap hit comes off the books.
Los Angeles doesn’t have a deep prospect pool, but they do have five picks in the first three rounds of this year’s draft, adding more ammunition to the idea that this could be a draft-day trade.
4. San Jose Sharks
Could San Jose Sharks Mike Grier swing another deal with the Canucks to bolster his rapidly ascending team?
Outside of Macklin Celebrini, the Sharks do have question marks at centre. Michael Misa is the future second-line pivot, but the 2025 second overall pick also spent a lot of time in junior playing the wing, leaving that as an option for the Sharks if they do target Pettersson.
Outside of him, the Sharks centres are Alex Wennberg, Ty Dellandrea, and Zack Ostapchuk.
The Canucks were linked to 21-year-old centre Filip Bystedt before the Kiefer Sherwood trade. Could the Canucks snag him, along with a first-round pick, in a deal for Pettersson?
5. Chicago Blackhawks
Whether it’s Celebrini or Connor Bedard, you can envision Pettersson as a defensively responsible second-line pivot behind either young star.
Patrick Johnston of The Province alluded to this recently, and both teams have the cap space to absorb his contract, along with the draft capital and prospects to pull off a deal.
Much like the Sharks, though, Chicago does have their second-line centre of the future in Frank Nazar playing NHL games. They also just drafted centre Anton Frondell third overall in 2025
If a trade were to work, could the Canucks target a first-round pick, plus one of Chicago’s B-level prospects like Sacha Boisvert, Oliver Moore, or Mason West?
6. Ottawa Senators
Say what you want about Travis Green’s tenure in Vancouver, but he did help Pettersson break out as an NHL star.
He had the wherewithal to play him at centre when some believed he’d be better suited to the wing. You can envision a reunion between Pettersson and Green working.
Ottawa should also have the desire to make a splash, considering that they’re falling behind in the Atlantic Division arms race, and their past interest in Pettersson was brought up recently by The Fourth Period’s Dave Pagnotta.
However, the Sens lack a first-round pick in this year’s draft, and their prospect pool is weak.
And even with Claude Giroux on the back-end of his career, the Sens have centres such as Tim Stutzle, Dylan Cozens, Shane Pinto, and Ridly Greig. Any Pettersson trade would likely have to include one of Cozens, Pinto or Greig coming back to the Canucks.
7. Utah Mammoth
The NHL’s newest franchise was linked to Petterson by Pagnotta.
Unlike Ottawa, it’s a bit easier to see Utah making this splash.
Their franchise has been stockpiling assets for years, but they’ve been unable to get over the hump.
They also have a lot of uncertainty down the middle with Logan Cooley injured and Nick Schmaltz a pending unrestricted free agent. Other centres, like Jack McBain and Kevin Stenlund, are depth guys, while Barrett Hayton has largely disappointed after being selected fifth overall in 2018.
It’s probably unrealistic to see Utah part with top prospects such as Caleb Desnoyers or Tij Igilna, but could they move a guy like centre Cole Beaudoin, 6-foot-5 winger Danill But, along with a draft pick?
Much like the Kings, a potential trade to Utah is easier to envision in the offseason once Utah’s cap situation clears up, and they figure out what to do with players like Schmaltz and Hayton.