In announcing the $32.5 million deal, Patrik Allvin called the newly-acquired Marcus Pettersson a “calming influence.”
One of the newest Canucks is set to be in Vancouver for many years yet to come.
A lanky, defensively responsible and offensively adept defenceman, Pettersson made a name for himself playing as caddy to the Penguins’ offensively inclined defencemen Erik Karlsson and Kris Letang.
Originally drafted in 2014 by the Anaheim Ducks, the Penguins traded for Pettersson during the 2018-19 season — when current Canucks’ president of hockey operations Jim Rutherford was Penguins GM.
Patrik Allvin, Rutherford’s GM here in Vancouver, was the Penguins’ director of European scouting in Pettersson’s draft year so this is a player he knows very well.
According to a statement by Allvin released through the team, it’s clear why Allvin and Rutherford acquired their former player.
“In just a couple of games, Marcus has already shown us the type of leadership, poise and character that we want in a top four defenceman,” Allvin said in the statement. “He has a calming influence on the ice, uses his long reach and hockey smarts to break up plays and has a good first pass to help us create more offensively. We are extremely happy to get this deal done and look forward to working with him in both the short term and long term.”
“One thing that I’ve learned from when I was a kid is that nobody’s faster than the puck out there, so I try to move the puck fast,” he said.
At 6-foot-5, he uses his size and reach very well to disrupt the opposition’s offensive efforts and then win control of the puck to move it up the ice.