Elias Pettersson, the Vancouver Canucks defenseman fans call D-Petey, gave his team a jolt Saturday night against Seattle.
First, he put Shane Wright down with a solid hit. Then he dropped the gloves with Ryan Winterton.
And the sequence paid off. He drew a minor penalty out of it, and Vancouver scored the go-ahead goal on the ensuing power play.
Why does that matter so much? Because the Canucks came into the night 0-3 this preseason, and they badly needed something to rally around.
In the clip, Wright goes down after the hit, and moments later the 22-year-old is squared up with Winterton.
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Plays like that tell a locker room somebody is willing to pay a price for the crest.
D-Petey and Luke Schenn could give Manny Malhotra a nasty third pair
Grady Sas floated the idea right away, saying D-Petey could form "a mean 3rd pair" with Luke Schenn.
Manny Malhotra should run with it. A winless camp needs an edge, and a pairing built on bite gives opponents something to think about.
Schenn already brings the veteran piece. He logged 14:50 in Thursday's loss to Edmonton.
The numbers on the young defenseman aren't flashy. He had three goals and 10 points in 70 games last season, finishing minus-16.
That isn't why he's getting noticed now. He's piled up 56 penalty minutes over 98 NHL games, and Saturday showed what that edge can do for a bench.
It's the quiet kid in class finally standing up to the bully. The whole room exhales, and suddenly everyone sits a little taller.
Vancouver took him 80th overall in 2022, a third-round pick who's had to claw for every inch since.
Just don't confuse him with the other Elias Pettersson, the forward carrying an $11,600,000 cap hit. This one is still earning his keep.
The regular season opens Tuesday in Edmonton, and a Canucks team that was outscored 9-4 in its first three preseason games could use a little snarl.
Whether Malhotra rewards D-Petey with a regular spot is the next question. After Saturday, leaving him out would send a strange message to the room.
Should Elias Pettersson and Luke Schenn be the Canucks' third pair on opening night?
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