Canucks 'desperate' to complete blockbuster trade involving $92.8-million star
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Aaron
Jun 28, 2026 (2:04 PM)
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Photo credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images
The Vancouver Canucks are not just listening on Elias Pettersson anymore. They sound like a team actively trying to detonate the core.
According to the latest reporting from The Athletic, Vancouver is eager to sell off several veterans, with one source even describing the club as “desperate” to move Elias Pettersson. That is a massive word to attach to a player carrying an $11.6 million cap hit through 2031-32.
Vancouver can't keep pretending this is normal
This is where things get dangerous for the Canucks.
Pettersson is not a depth problem or an expiring-contract headache. He is supposed to be one of the faces of the franchise. If the organization is already this motivated to move him, then the relationship is probably much worse behind the scenes than anyone wants to admit publicly.
Multiple league sources have suggested to The Athletic this weekend that Vancouver is eager to sell a variety of their veteran players. The club is open to discussing just about every established veteran on the roster, and one source even characterized the club as “desperate” to move off of struggling, highly-compensated centre Elias Pettersson. We know, too, that Jake DeBrusk has been in play, and there are various teams doing their homework - including the Ottawa Senators - on the possibility of adding the net-front specialist to their lineup.
The Jake DeBrusk note matters, too. DeBrusk is signed at $5.5 million annually through 2030-31, and if teams like the Ottawa Senators are doing homework on him, Vancouver clearly is not just shopping one unhappy star. This looks like a broader veteran purge.
The problem is leverage. Once “desperate” gets out, rival teams stop offering clean hockey trades and start hunting for discounts. That is why Vancouver has to act fast if a real Pettersson market exists. Vancouver may even need to retain salary to make a deal happen.
Waiting only makes the situation uglier.
The Canucks do not need another summer of denial. They need clarity. If Pettersson no longer fits the room, the timeline, or the organization's trust, then this week is the time to find the biggest possible blockbuster and move on.
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