Canucks’ Pettersson named 1st star of the week
NEW YORK (CP) — Elias Pettersson’s stock continues to rise.
The Vancouver Canucks rookie centre was named the NHL’s first star of the week on Monday after racking up two goals and six assists in three games.
Tampa Bay Lightning goaltender Louis Domingue got the nod as the second star, and Calgary Flames winger Johnny Gaudreau rounded out the top three.
The NHL’s rookie of the month for October, Pettersson had a goal and four assists in Vancouver’s 6-1 road win over the St. Louis Blues on Sunday for his second five-point performance of the season.
The 20-year-old Swede, who recorded two goals and three assists against the Colorado Avalanche in early November, is the sixth rookie in the expansion era to notch multiple five-point games in a season.
Pettersson, the fifth pick in the 2017 draft, leads all rookies with 30 points (15 goals and 15 assists) in 26 games.
Domingue went 3-0-0 with a 1.33 goalsagainst average and .957 save percentage to backstop the Lightning, who lead the NHL’s overall standings, to a perfect four-game week as starter Andrei Vasilevskiy continues to recover from a broken foot.
Gaudreau mirrored Pettersson’s eight points with two goals and six assists in four games to help the Flames move atop the Western Conference.
Canucks’ Gagner on latest AHL demotion: ‘It’s hard to take’
TORONTO — Sam Gagner was back in the NHL and feeling great.
Playing an important role with the Vancouver Canucks — first-line minutes, No. 1 power play — following a surprise banishment to the minors before the season, his family had also been reunited on the West Coast.
The 29-year-old forward was all smiles at the team’s skills competition earlier this month, accompanied on the bench by one of his two young sons wearing dad’s blue No. 89 jersey.
Even though the Canucks were struggling, Gagner had a goal and two assists, and was regularly deployed late in games. There was reason for optimism.
A couple of days later, however, Gagner got his second shock in two months when the Canucks returned him to the AHL’s Toronto Marlies, resuming their loan agreement.
“I played really well when I was in Vancouver — that’s the surprising part,” he said after his first game back with the Marlies over the weekend. “Both (Canucks GM Jim Benning and head coach Travis Green) said the same thing. They thought I played well.
“That’s why it’s hard to take.”
A veteran of 770 NHL games heading into this season, Gagner was demoted despite playing more than 18 minutes a night during that two-week stretch.
His average of 3:14 on the power play was tied for third with Bo Horvat, trailing only Brock Boeser and Elias Pettersson. Gagner also had the best even-strength shot differential at 58.21 per cent, while his other advanced metrics suggest he was unlucky not to have scored more often.
It wasn’t enough to keep him up with the big club.
“We weren’t finding wins,” Gagner said. “But that stint drove it home for me that I can play at that level and be effective.”
An eyebrow-raising training camp cut — he signed a three-year, US$9.45-million contract in free agency two summers ago, choosing the Canucks over a number of other suitors — Gagner was loaned to the Marlies in October instead of being assigned to Vancouver’s affiliate in Utica, N.Y., after clearing waivers.
And while Gagner, who had seven goals and eight assists in 15 games with Toronto before getting recalled on Nov. 18, said he would never ask for a trade, a move would clearly be welcomed at this point.
“I want an NHL opportunity,” said Gagner, whose rights are maintained by the Canucks. “I’d like for it to be in Vancouver, but it doesn’t really seem like I’m in their plans. “I’ve proven I belong.”
Gagner, who is making US$3.5 million this season no matter where he plays, has 153 goals and 283 assists in parts of 12 NHL campaigns.
The sixth pick in the 2007 draft by Edmonton said he was told by the Canucks the reason for this demotion was simple — unlike some other veterans on the roster, he didn’t have to clear waivers a second time.
Caught in a numbers game with a rebuilding franchise, Gagner skated around the question when asked if he regretted signing in Vancouver following his 50-point season with Columbus in 2016-17.
“I had bounced around,” said Gagner, who like many Canucks had a tough 2017-18 with just 10 goals and 21 assists. “They seemed to be very excited about having me there. That’s kind of the surprising part. It’s the same coach and management. “Definitely frustrating.”
Marlies head coach Sheldon Keefe said the way Gagner has dealt with the adversity is a lesson to his young players.
“You have to make the best of it,” Keefe said. “He’s dusted himself off and got back to work.”
“His career is what any of us wish we could have,” added Marlies veteran centre Chris Mueller. “I’m not too familiar with the Canucks’ situation, but I know he’s a hell of a hockey player and deserves to be up there.”