Elias Pettersson kicked off 2024 with an incredible January, racking up 14 goals and 21 points in 13 games.
In that stretch — and in plenty of previous moments in his career — Pettersson showed that he can take over a game. But fans haven’t seen that as much from him recently.
Since the All-Star break, Pettersson has still picked up points — 4 goals and 15 points in 19 games — but hasn’t been the dominant force that fans know he can be. And in the Canucks’ last two losses, when they’ve needed a star to step up, Petterson has been kept quiet.
Part of that has to do with quality of linemates. In January, Pettersson was primarily playing with J.T. Miller and Brock Boeser on the Lotto Line, while his other typical linemates this season have been the snakebitten Ilya Mikheyev, the still-raw Nils Höglander, and fourth-liner Sam Lafferty.
But even with that in mind, Pettersson hasn’t been his usual dynamic self. At his best, Pettersson keeps his feet moving, attacking the opposing blue line with pace, cutting through the middle of the ice to create scoring chances and draw penalties. At his worst, Pettersson’s feet come to a coast, making it too easy for opposing teams to take away his passing and shooting lanes and knock him off the puck.
Canucks coach Rick Tocchet has frequently talked about the whole team’s need to move their feet, which seems like such a basic element from an outside perspective. Do elite hockey players still need to be reminded to keep their feet moving?
When this lead-footed reporter a little too bluntly asked Pettersson if he needed such a reminder, Pettersson coolly replied, “I think I just got one.”
"Your feet don't move and you become a very average player."
One player who seemingly never needs that reminder is Conor Garland, whose feet are constantly in motion on the ice. And yet, he still gets that reminder every single game.
“My mom and dad text me before every game, that’s the only thing they told me my whole life, just to move your feet,” said Garland with a chuckle.
But even Garland has his moments where his feet stop moving. To him, the feet stopping isn’t the root issue; it’s a symptom of something else.
“When you’re at your best, you’re skating and you’re playing mind-free and when you’re not mind-free, your feet stop moving,” said Garland. “I think those two go hand-in-hand. Less thinking and playing more on your instincts is good for everybody.”
Is that the issue for Pettersson, that he’s overthinking instead of trusting his instincts? Garland was quick to say that he wasn’t an “expert” and could only speak from his own experience.
“I just know when I have stuff going on and you’re thinking, then your feet don’t move and you become a very average player,” said Garland.
"You've got to make that play two seconds before."
Tocchet suggested the issue is when a player is overthinking in the moment rather than thinking ahead. To Tocchet, a player needs to already know what he wants to do with the puck when it comes to him, so that he’s already in motion, moving his feet as he receives the puck rather than trying to assess options after the puck has already arrived.
“You kind of freeze a little bit instead of knowing the puck is coming, ‘Okay, when I get it, what am I looking for?’” said Tocchet. “I think you’ve got to make that play two seconds before — it’s like chess.”
Tocchet also suggested that keeping your feet moving comes with time, experience, and practice.
“You look at a guy like [Vasily] Podkolzin, last year he’d catch it and he’d freeze,” said Tocchet. “Now, if you watch him, he’s starting to catch the puck and he’s moving. That comes with experience and physical reps.”
"He’s got to get in his head that move-my-feet, give-me-the-puck mentality."
Perhaps there’s an experience element to it even for Pettersson, who is playing in the most high-pressure environment of his career with the Canucks at the top of the Western Conference standings with every other team gunning for them as they push for the playoffs.
But again, Pettersson doesn’t need the reminder to move his feet. He’s already well aware.
“He was talking, 'I’m not moving my feet.' He’ll tell me, ‘Listen, I’ve got to get my game going.’ It’s not like he doesn’t know,” said Tocchet. “His practice was really good today. I saw he was moving his feet, scored a couple of goals on 2-on-1s. That’s the sort of stuff that he’s got to get in his head: that move-my-feet, give-me-the-puck mentality.”
Perhaps Pettersson’s new linemates will help with that mentality, as Monday’s practice saw him matched with the two Canucks with the highest motors on the team: Garland and Höglander. Tocchet suggested that those two players could also help Pettersson loosen up a little bit and stop overthinking.
“Go into Buffalo, go have some fun,” said Tocchet. “You’ve got a couple of fun linemates: just go do your thing. I think that’s when he’s at his best, when he has his mind clear.”
