As is the case during an NHL offseason, the rumours are starting to heat up. And the Vancouver Canucks‘ highest-paid player has found his name in trade discussion yet again.

According to Donnie & Dhali’s Rick Dhaliwal, there is ‘lots of chatter’ that teams around the league are calling the Canucks on Elias Pettersson:

“It’s that time of the year. Lots of chatter that teams are calling on Elias Pettersson. … So Rutherford signs Pettersson, and then immediately they’re trying to trade the guy. Teams are calling again. Rutherford wanted a top centre in return for Pettersson when he was here. Not sure Ryan Johnson is looking for that in return.”

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Pettersson, 27, was drafted by the Canucks in the first round (fifth overall) of the 2017 NHL draft. Coming off a strong draft-plus-one season in the SHL, where he scored 24 goals and 32 assists for 56 points in 44 games – the highest single-season point total from any 19-year-old in SHL history – the hype in Canucks-land on Pettersson was massive.

The Sundsvall, Sweden, native came overseas the following season, where he scored 28 goals and 66 points in 71 games en route to winning the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s top rookie. Pettersson became only the second Canuck in franchise history to win the award. The other being Pavel Bure in 1992.

The 6’2″ left-shot centreman lived up to the expectations over the five seasons, eclipsing the 100-point plateau in 2022-23 for the first time since Daniel Sedin in 2010-11. The following year, Pettersson maintained that pace, earning him the most lucrative contract in Canucks history: an eight-year, $92.8 million deal with an annual salary of $11.6 million.

Since signing the contract, Pettersson’s game has declined. He has just 96 points in 138 games in the first two years of his new deal. His unprecedented drop in play has led fans to sour on the player, and his name is now a primary trade candidate around the league – for those willing to bet on his bounceback while taking on his hefty price tag as the Canucks head into a lengthy rebuild.