You’re not misreading that headline.
It’s day two of the 2022 NHL Draft in Montreal, and with their second pick, the Vancouver Canucks have selected left-shot defenceman Elias Pettersson in the third round at 80th overall.
Coming in at 6’2” and 185 pounds, Pettersson is a bigger defenceman whose number one asset is his shot. He’s scored 12 goals in 37 Junior games this year and has dressed for 10 SHL games as well.
Here’s what Elite Prospects’ Cam Robinson — who had Pettersson ranked at 45 — had to say about Pettersson’s game:
A two-way defender who brings good physicality, a smart stick and plus-rated skating. He earned himself 17 SHL contests and popped offensively in the J20 playoffs.
“We are sitting here and we can see the Canucks are picking soon,” Pettersson’s agent Joakim Persson told Rick Dhaliwal. “This is Elias’s favourite team, it’s a dream come true for him. He can not believe Vancouver selected him, he is so excited.
In our last Monday Mailbag, we talked about the potential of the Canucks drafting this Elias Pettersson, but we definitely didn’t think he would go in the third round.
Here’s what we wrote:
Born in Västerås, Sweden — this Elias Pettersson is a 17-year-old left-shot defenceman who is currently playing for Örebro in the SHL. He spent the beginning of the season bouncing around in the J20 and J18 league but played well enough to suit up for some SHL games.Pettersson isn’t expected to go in the top 60 and could fall to even the fifth round according to some scouts.“Not a ton of upside there, but could play in a hyper-specialized defensive bottom-pairing role,” one scout told CanucksArmy.
Clearly, the Canucks believe in this kid, and we’ll get a further explanation of what they like about this player soon.
To mess with your mind a little bit more, we’re pleased to inform you that Elias Pettersson just said his favourite player is Elias Pettersson.
It worked out pretty well for the Canucks the last time the public consensus determined that they reached to draft a player named Elias Pettersson.
Here is Faber’s full writeup on Elias Pettersson from February:
Yesterday, the Canucks selected Jonathan Lekkerimäki at 15th overall. You can read our full write up on him here.
- What we like about the Canucks’ new top prospect Jonathan Lekkerimäki, with thoughts from GM Patrik Allvin
- Canucks reportedly “trying to get a last minute deal done” with J.T. Miller ahead of the draft
- Abbotsford Canucks goalie coach Curtis Sanford hired by Toronto Maple Leafs
- 3 ways and 6 players the Canucks could target to fill their need for a shutdown defenceman
- Monday Mailbag: Drafting another Elias Pettersson, analyzing Myers’ trade value, plus first round pick trade packages for the Canucks
- Report: Canucks will not be re-signing Nic Petan, Brad Hunt to explore his options in free agency
- Conor Garland’s first season as a Vancouver Canuck was full of spins and turns, but what’s next?
- Eleven right-handed depth forwards the Canucks could add in the UFA market
- What the NHL’s October 11th start date means for the Canucks, and more specifically, their goaltenders
