3 questions facing Vancouver Canucks

NHL.com is providing in-depth analysis for each of its 32 teams from Aug. 1-Sept. 1. Today, three important questions facing the Vancouver Canucks.

1. Can Elias Pettersson bounce back as a No.1 center?

The Canucks are counting on Elias Pettersson to bounce back from a disappointing season.

The 26-year-old center set NHL career highs in goals (39), assists (63) and points (102) in 2022-23 and was on a similar pace through the end of January 2024 with 64 points in 49 games. But he finished 2023-24 with 89 points (34 goals, 55 assists), and last season that total dropped by almost half to 45 points (15 goals, 30 assists) in 64 games amid a rift with top center J.T. Miller that contributed to Miller being traded to the New York Rangers on Jan. 31.

Pettersson talked about “revenge” and being “a more mature player” during Sweden's orientation camp for the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, and about no longer being slowed by a knee injury that limited his offseason training going into last season, which led to since departed coach Rick Tocchet criticizing his preparation.

General manager Patrik Allvin believes Pettersson has put all of that behind him, and is confident based on past performances that he can be a No.1 center.

“The conversation, even back to our exit meetings, we turned the page and are moving forward and I think that's what excites Elias, too,” Allvin said. “I'm very confident that he's going to come back to show what he's capable of. … I know the coaching staff had several conversations with the leadership group, and Elias being part of the leadership group as well, so I'm excited to see him back here for a fresh start.”

2. Will Filip Chytil be the second-line center?

The questions surrounding Filip Chytil being the Canucks second-line center are a mix of whether he will still be when the season begins, and if he is capable of the job.

Canucks management talked after last season about the importance of adding a center to replace Miller, and Allvin told NHL.com on Aug. 21 it was still “a little bit early to say” if the roster now will be the same one that starts the season. Allvin said the July 17 trade that sent forward Dakota Joshua to the Toronto Maple Leafs was in part to open roster space for young players that were part of the American Hockey League Calder Cup championship with Abbotsford, but also to “create some more (salary) cap flexibility.”

“As you've seen this summer, it's fairly quiet and not a lot of transactions,” Allvin said. “This gives us flexibility if something comes along that makes us believe our team gets better.”

If not, Allvin has indicated he and new coach Adam Foote are comfortable starting with Chytil and Pettersson as their top centers. Chytil, who was acquired from the Rangers as part of the Miller trade, had six points (two goals, four assists) in 15 games with Vancouver before missing the final 16 games with a concussion he has since recovered from. The 25-year-old has 170 points (77 goals, 93 assists) in 393 NHL games over eight seasons.

“There was a reason why he was drafted in the first round (No. 21 by the Rangers in the 2017 NHL Draft) and was started to play in the National Hockey League really early,” Allvin said, “He's still a good player. We still believe it. I think he recognizes that, and he was very happy and excited to be part of the Canucks and coming into Vancouver and getting to know the city and his teammates and all that, so I think he will come in with more confidence.”

3. Can a top tandem help Demko stay healthy?

The Canucks invested heavily in a goalie tandem they believe can be one of the NHL’s best.

Vancouver signed Kevin Lankinen to a five-year, $22.5 million contract on Feb. 21, rewarding the 30-year-old Finn for a strong first season with the Canucks.

They then signed incumbent starter Thatcher Demko on July 1 to a three-year, $25.5 million deal that starts in 2026-27. The hope is that combination not only gives the Canucks top-end goaltending for the next four seasons, but that more rest also helps Demko make it through a full season healthy for the first time since he became the No. 1 four seasons ago.

Demko was a finalist for the Vezina Trophy as the League’s best goalie two seasons ago but missed the end of that 2023-24 season and all but one game of the Stanley Cup Playoffs with knee injuries that also kept him out the first two months of last season. He finished the 2024-25 season, which was interrupted twice more by injuries, with 23 games played and an .889 save percentage but president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford was encouraged by an in-season change in training for the 29-year-old.

“I like what [Demko] has found,” Rutherford said at the end of the season. “The thing that I feel really comfortable with is leading up to him returning to play, he had a different approach to his training, which is more of a preventative training for injuries.”