On today’s episode of Canucks Conversation, David Quadrelli and Harman Dayal took a long look at Elias Pettersson’s season so far — not just the point totals, but the details in his game that have shifted in a meaningful way.

Harm began by pointing out the biggest difference he sees in Pettersson right now. “I’m impressed by his ‘give a bleep’ meter,” he said. “With the way he’s laying his body on the line, sometimes even recklessly when you’d want him to be a bit more careful; battling down low defensively and his overall effort level, away from the puck especially, has been first class. It’s not to say he wasn’t trying or didn’t care last year, but there’s a different level of urgency to his game now.”

He added that this shift carries weight, particularly given Pettersson’s contract. “When you’re an 11.6-million-dollar player, it’s one thing if you’re struggling offensively and your work rate is nothing exceptional — we had these conversations last year about his effort and leadership,” Harm said. “Whereas when you see him this year and how he’s sacrificing defensively; that earns the respect of your teammates.”

That effort also matters for the bigger picture. With uncertainty around the direction of the franchise — and around Quinn Hughes’ long-term future — Pettersson’s professionalism becomes even more important. “Even if he has stretches where the points don’t come, there’s going to be a different level of respect his teammates have for him because he’s giving 110% every night and leading by example,” Harm explained. “If it ends up being some kind of rebuild or retool, you want the veterans to be guys the young players can learn from. That’s the first thing Pettersson deserves credit for; he’s really levelled up the urgency, desperation, and overall professionalism of his game.”

From there, Harm shifted to the offensive side of Pettersson’s game. Last season, one of the biggest frustrations was his one-on-one play. “There were countless examples last year where he was trying to beat a player one-on-one and it felt like it was happening at half speed, and those dekes were getting picked off really easily,” he said. This year, though, the signs of that high-end skill are returning. “I can see it starting to form — not saying it’s back to his peak level, but you’re seeing the sparks of it, and it’s really encouraging.”

Still, there are areas where Pettersson hasn’t fully rebounded. “I still want to see more shots from him,” Harman said. “His individual shot rate at five-on-five is low — under four shots per hour — and is a lower rate than last year, and about half of when he was at his peak. He still needs to find ways to attack more, but I’m curious to see how that might shift now that his deployment could be freed up with David Kämpf taking on more of the defensive zone starts.”

To tie everything together, Harm offered what he felt was the best overall framing of Pettersson’s season relative to last year and his 102-point peak. “He’s halfway back with the potential to get closer and closer to being the elite difference-maker he’s been when he’s at his best,” he said. “Last year you’d say he’s performing like a second-line centre, whereas now, with the point production and especially with the context of his matchups, he’s performing like a first-line centre — maybe more low-end than high-end, but it’s a notable improvement.”

The data backs up that progression. “With his speed burst, last year he was right around league average, and this year he’s in the 71st percentile which is a nice improvement. At his best, he was in the 89th percentile, so he’s not all the way back but it’s a step in the right direction,” Harm explained.

Shooting metrics tell a similar story. “Last year, he only had 25 shot attempts all season that eclipsed 80 miles per hour. This year, he’s already at 11. So it’s November and he’s already almost halfway to his total from a year ago,” Harman said. “In the 2022-23 season, he had 110 shot attempts clocked at 80 miles per hour or faster. Part of that is he was shooting the puck a lot more, but even on a percentage basis — 53% of his shots were at that velocity, where this year he’s about 33%. So there’s still room to come back, but you’re starting to see some of the physical attributes return to form.”

Overall, Pettersson isn’t back to being the dominant, game-breaking superstar he once was — but the foundation of that player is reappearing. And for a Canucks team searching for stability, identity, and leadership, that might be the most meaningful part of his season so far.

You can watch the full segment here:

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