While Canucks remain unpredictable, Pettersson’s reliability persists

DENVER — When Luke Schenn saved his National Hockey League career four years ago in his first appearance with the Vancouver Canucks, Elias Pettersson was just a rookie — a lean dynamo of puck skills scoring his way to the Calder trophy.

« I don’t want to get ahead of myself, » Schenn said Wednesday, « but I remember some of the games that Petey was playing, and the way he was playing, and with his style and ability, for some reason, I just thought: Pavel Datsyuk. That’s what I thought. Obviously, he’s becoming a much better 200-footer.

After telling Canucks coach Bruce Boudreau he was ready for more defensively, Pettersson was assigned Wednesday night to face Colorado Avalanche superstar Nathan MacKinnon and the extremely talented players around him. This game was a draw for the Canucks, which was a big reason the team managed to beat the Avalanche 4-3.

One game after squandering another two-goal lead in the third period in a 5-4 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, the Canucks came back in the final 20 minutes – at altitude – with goals from Ethan Bear and former Avalanche forward Sheldon Dries to win for the third time in four games.

They confuse. No lead for the Canucks feels secure, but few games are unwinnable. Twenty games into the National Hockey League season, the Canucks are a riot to watch because they are unpredictable.

But Pettersson’s move into a two-way role that Boudreau could try to expand could make the team much more reliable.

Pettersson has his work cut out for him ahead of Pavel Datsyuk, the former Detroit Red Wing great who won three Selke Trophies and was a runner-up for three more. But Pettersson is already the best two-way center on the team.

He asked Boudreau before the season for an expanded role and has reminded his coach several times since he feels ready.

« I mentioned I’m ready if he wants to play me there, but obviously the coaches make those decisions, » Pettersson said after the Canucks’ most impressive win so far. « Tonight I had the chance and I just tried to make the most of it.

« I love him. I want to play against the best line, the best players.

Lined up with his usual wingers, Ilya Mikheyev and Andrei Kuzmenko, Pettersson played from the start against MacKinnon, Mikko Rantanen and Artturi Lehkonen. The Canuck line scored just 21 seconds into the first period when Pettersson bounced a pass into the slot to Mikheyev, who fired a stormy shot over Colorado goaltender Pavel Francouz.

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Rantanen tied the game with his skate, directing Devon Toews’ center pass past Canucks goaltender Spencer Martin at 11:27. But that would be the only even-strength goal Vancouver gave up.

Rantanen and Makar scored on the Avalanche’s best power play in the NHL, the second at five-on-three giving Colorado a 3-2 lead at 15:59 of the second period.

But Dries, who left the Avalanche to sign a free agent contract with the Canucks before last season, tied the game 3-3 at 5:07 of the third period when he returned a rebound on the pad from Francouz after cleverly lifting Toews’ stick to allow the puck to reach the net.

And Bear fired a slap shot high through Mikheyev’s screen as the teams skated four-on-four in the 12th minute.

« I loved my time here, » Dries said. “But it was just a different opportunity and I wanted to come to Vancouver. It’s always nice to score against your old team. It was time to check the guts for us.

The Canucks defended their one-goal lead over the final eight minutes, with Martin finishing with 33 saves and Pettersson with even more confidence that he can check the NHL’s best players.

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« You know, I thought he was fine, » Boudreau said of Pettersson’s pairing against MacKinnon. « And I say that (because) it’s not just MacKinnon. Makar and Toews are always with them every time. I think Petey wanted to take on the challenge and I think he did a really good job.

The Canucks travel to Vegas to face the Golden Knights on Saturday, then wrap up their three-game road trip against the San Jose Sharks on Sunday.

Who knows what to expect?

« I know one thing, » Boudreau said. « They’re in every game and they’re going to try really hard, and they think they’re going to win. Sometimes that doesn’t happen. And when we’ve had the start that we’ve had, a lot of times we hold onto the sticks too much when we « Let’s take the lead. It takes a few (wins). If we ever get lucky on the weekend, I think confidence snowballs and all of a sudden you start pretty well.

« You take one on the chin and you lose a lead in the third period, and the guys show up at the rink the next day and want to improve and want to improve, » Schenn said. « We can’t fix anything from the past, but we have 62 games left. The only thing is that we haven’t closed as many games as we would like, but we are in every game. And every game seems winnable, which is a good thing.

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