Marcus Pettersson should provide plenty of stability for his new offensively-minded teammates like Elias Pettersson and Brock Boeser.
It took all of five days for Marcus Pettersson to sign a contract with his new team.
But the fit was so good for the newest Canuck defenceman right out of the box that he didn’t hesitate about the idea of a deal with his new team.
“I’m really excited to be here, and it felt right right away when I got here, and I think knowing the management before helped (too),” he told reporters Thursday on a Zoom call from San Jose.
Let’s take a look at Pettersson’s new deal and some of the things we have already learned about this Pettersson, who has been known as “Dragon” in the past and is fully prepared to be called such going forward.
5.5
So Marcus Pettersson’s cap hit — $5.5 million per year for six years — is super reasonable. And with the cap surging over the next three seasons, that’s going to be a lovely figure in the future.
Look at the defencemen already making this amount: Matt Roy (Washington Capitals) at $5.75 million, Brett Pesce (New Jersey Devils) at $5.5 million, and Jaccob Slavin (Carolina Hurricanes) at $5.3 million, and he has signed an extension that will pay him $6.4 million.
That’s a very nice set of comparables. These are all defence-first guys who can chip in here and there on offence — just like Pettersson himself.
65
The biggest question I have for Pettersson is how will he do being “The Guy” on his defence pair.
In Pittsburgh, he generally served as caddy for either Kris Letang or Erik Karlsson.
Karlsson was Pettersson’s most common defence partner this season. Pettersson was a steady, calm partner for either high-octane blueliner.
10
Here’s an interesting one: Marcus Pettersson isn’t known for offence, but when he’s been on the ice during his career, his team’s offensive shot quality has increased by 10 per cent.
That’s a statement, partly, about the quality of players he has played with. He is a guy who has played with top-end players such as Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, and he has played well in those minutes.
He wouldn’t keep getting thrown out there if he were holding them back.
Again, stable environment allowing top-end offensive talents to do their thing.
40 + 6
If there are two players who do need to set the tone for this team, it’s these two. Pettersson is supposed to be the Canucks’ best forward. Boeser has been the team’s best goal scorer.
If the team is going to make the playoffs, let alone make noise in the playoffs, it will be on both of them.