If Elias Pettersson does in fact get traded from Vancouver this season, fans won't have seen the last of him in a Canucks uniform.
The superstar 26-year-old forward will make his return from injured reserve to the Vancouver Canucks per general manager Patrik Allvin.
General Manager Patrik Allvin announced today that F Elias Pettersson has been activated from IR.
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) January 10, 2025Pettersson was retroactively placed on injured reserve last week after having sustained an undisclosed injury on Dec. 23 in a 4-3 victory against the San Jose Sharks.
He's missed six games in which the Canucks have gone 1-2-3.
Pettersson had notched two goals in that game to break a six-game point drought.
His return comes during a tumultuous period for the Canucks as rumors continue to swirl on locker room drama between him and fellow forward J.T. Miller.
Both Pettersson and Miller have denied that there is any validity to these rumors whatsoever, but even so, the effects of the negativity surrounding the Canucks has taken its toll.
Vancouver has won only three out of its last 10 games since this narrative started to pick up traction in December.
It's unclear how general manager Patrik Allvin will decide to navigate the situation between now and the trade deadline on March 8, but the speculation is revealing that it is more and more likely that either one of Pettersson or Miller will be moved.
This has led to both players sharing the No. 1 spot on the TSN trade bait list.
"That's not to say the two Canucks will be traded or, for that matter, a guarantee either will be traded, but at this moment they are top of the charts in trade talk," TSN hockey analyst Steve Dryden wrote on Friday.
"Pettersson has been connected with Carolina among other teams. The silky Swede has been injured this season, but with 10 goals and 28 points in 34 games, he hasn't played up to his $11.6-AAV contract that has seven more years to run. Miller took a leave of absence from the Canucks that stretched from the second half of November into the first half of December, but he's back and has season totals of 29 points in 30 games."
Pettersson recently addressed the rumors and that it's all really out of his own control at this point.
"I'm aware of it, I've heard it," Pettersson said to Sportsnet. "But then it's like, can I control it? No. So that's where I'm at. I'm trying not to think about it. But I'm sure it will go away if I play better and if we win."
More NHL: Canucks' Elias Pettersson Blocks Out Noise Amidst Rumors: 'I Know What I Can Do'
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