Elias Pettersson leads the NHL with 19 body checks, and the Vancouver Canucks centre's fast start is changing the conversation about his future.
Ben Kuzma of The Province laid it out Monday, after two seasons of nonstop trade speculation.
Pettersson has six points through four games and is winning 50.1 percent of his faceoffs.
"If you feel good and are happy, the job gets easier," he said before training camp. "This is a great place to play and I love the city."
Vancouver should keep him. A 27-year-old centre playing this hard on a rebuilding team is exactly who you want the kids learning from.
It's the old car you were ready to sell that suddenly starts every morning in January. Hard to put the listing up now.
What about the contract? He carries an $11,600,000 cap hit for five more seasons after this one, plus a no-movement clause.
Elias Pettersson's fast start is changing the conversation about his Canucks future
The Los Angeles Kings, who lost Anze Kopitar to retirement, wondered whether a change of scenery would spark him, per Kuzma.
So did the Detroit Red Wings, whose captain Dylan Larkin wants out.
His production dipped to 15 goals and 51 points last season, though he led all forwards with 108 blocked shots.
The thinking has been that 20 goals by the March 1 trade deadline would make him easier to move, if he waives.
Filip Chytil is out week-to-week with a shoulder injury, and Marco Rossi has shifted to the wing.
Paul Cotter has four goals in four games after moving to centre, and he was named the league's third star of the first week.
"We're close," Pettersson said after Sunday's 3-2 loss to Vegas. "We're getting better every game."
The Canucks are 2-2-0 and open a six-game, 10-day road trip Thursday in Carolina.
Nick Kypreos said last month there's no urgency for Vancouver to make a move, even as teams take an interest again.
Every good shift makes him easier to trade. It also makes him harder to give away, and Vancouver has to decide which one matters more.
Source : Canucks: Has inspired play changed the Elias Pettersson conversation?
Should the Canucks keep Elias Pettersson instead of trading him?
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