Canucks' Elias Pettersson Faces Criticism from NHL Insider After Horrible Start

Given how deep this team was, many players in the lineup had career years, and Elias Pettersson and the Vancouver Canucks were among the NHL's top teams during the regular season last year. Pettersson, who finished the season with 34 goals and 89 points, was one player who had another fantastic campaign, but his second half wasn't as strong as his first half.

Pettersson has only scored one goal overall in his last 11 regular season games to end 2023-2024, and he has exactly zero goals at 5v5 in his last 34 games. Many people are wondering what's wrong with the man who goes by the nickname "EP40," who has only contributed one assist in four games this season.

This significant production decline may be caused by a variety of factors. He may be distracted by other matters, be dealing with personal issues, or be dealing with unreported injuries. Justin Bourne of Sportsnet claims that he's just not mentally there at the moment:

He signed a $92.8 million, eight-year contract last March to become the highest-paid Canuck, but his performance hasn't kept up with that status thus far. After four games and one point, people are beginning to question whether he's getting paid what he's supposed to. More worrisome is the fact that this recent lack of production isn't a recent issue; rather, it began last season, right after he signed the extension.

The talented Elias Pettersson's recent performance has raised some legitimate concerns, but it's far too soon to give up on him just yet. He has demonstrated his abilities in the NHL and abroad in previous years, and he should eventually adjust to the demands of his new contract or fully recover from that injury. He might be able to regain his form if the doubts go away. There is every reason to think he can guide Vancouver to victory this season if he does.