Abbotsford Canucks defenceman Elias Pettersson has been named to the 2025 AHL All-Star Classic’s Pacific Division roster, the American Hockey League announced today.

The 20-year-old rookie becomes just the third player in franchise history to receive this honour and will be the youngest Abbotsford Canucks player to ever participate in an All-Star Game.

The Västerås, Sweden native, is having an outstanding rookie season, sitting second among Abbotsford defencemen in assists (11) and points (12) and second on the team in penalty minutes (32) and plus-minus rating (+5)

He scored his first career AHL goal in November against San Jose product and now fellow Pacific Division teammate Yaroslav Askarov.

Pettersson has played in 30 of Abbotsford’s 31 games this season, only missing one game due to a recall by the Vancouver Canucks, the fifth most by any rookie leaguewide.

His road to the AHL All-Star Classic has been paved with steady growth and international success. Before joining Abbotsford, he played 64 SHL regular season games in Sweden’s top professional league, 34 games in the Allsvenskan, and 55 in Sweden’s top junior circuit.

He has also represented Sweden internationally, winning a Gold Medal at the 2021-22 U18 World Championship, a Silver Medal at the 2024 World Junior Championship, and a Bronze Medal at the 2021-22 Hlinka Gretzky Cup.

“Elias has had a very good start to his pro career in North America,” said Abbotsford Canucks General Manager Ryan Johnson in a team press release. “This is a great honour for him to be recognized by the other coaches in our division.”

Also named to the event are former Canucks Zac Dalpe (Charlotte Checkers) and goaltender Michael DiPietro (Providence Bruins).

The 2025 AHL All-Star Classic will be held at Acrisure Arena in Palm Desert, California, home of the Canucks’ Pacific Division rivals Coachella Valley Firebirds.

The AHL All-Star Skills Competition will be on Sunday, February 2, followed by the All-Star Challenge on Monday, February 3. Both events start at 6 p.m. PST and will be broadcast on AHLTV.