As expected, Elias Pettersson is eager to put last season behind him. It was a dreadful season for Pettersson, who put up just 15 goals and 30 assists through 64 games in year one of his eight-year $92.80 million contract.

“Yeah I feel great, I had a good summer, and I’m excited to be back,” Pettersson said to a pool of reporters assembled at Northview Golf & Country Club for the Canucks’ annual Jake Milford charity golf tournament.

Pettersson commented on management re-signing core players like Brock Boeser and Thatcher Demko, saying it’s great that the team is keeping the core together and that he’s excited for the future with the group. Pettersson also shared that he got married over the summer, calling it the best day of his life.

Pettersson also talked about new Canucks head coach Adam Foote:

“I mean, he’s been it’s been our assistant coach for three years now. He’s been a great leader. He’s good to talk to, and just the talks we’ve been having over the summer, it’s been really good. So really, really looking forward to it.”

As a result of his on-ice struggles last season, Canucks management publicly questioned Pettersson’s practice habits, preparation, and offseason work in 2024. General manager Patrik Allvin even shared that Pettersson’s offseason training plan was a key topic during his exit meeting with the team’s highest-paid player.

Pettersson was glad to share that he put on six kilos — just over 13 pounds — of muscle this offseason. He even requested that we make it our headline!

“I added six kilos, so you can add that to your headline,” Pettersson said. “Jokes aside, I feel good. It’s been a long, long summer, so I tried to add some muscle and am ready to be myself again out there. I feel confident.”

That’s the exact type of thing Canucks fans want to hear from Pettersson, but obviously, it will take a lot more than words for fans to believe Pettersson can return to being the high-impact player he’s been at times throughout his career.

You can watch the full availability from Pettersson below!