NHL News: Elias Pettersson’s Canucks reportedly have no choice but to look within to fill big void on lineup

The 2025–26 NHL season is slowly approaching, but the Vancouver Canucks have yet to add another top-six centerman to support Elias Pettersson and company. With options running thin, a report suggests the organization may have no choice but to search internally.

It’s no secret the Canucks need to address the centerman position before the NHL season comes around. However, the market around the league is almost non-existent. Not many teams are willing to engage in trade talks, making it essentially an “every man for himself” free-for-all.

In this scenario, Pettersson and the Canucks still expect answers. For Vancouver to turn the tide, the players need to see genuine commitment from the front office—and vice versa. The players are putting in the work, but moves have yet to be made to address the second-line center slot. Now, time is at a premium. Thus, the only solution may be for the Canucks to find that top-six centerman among their current players and prospects.

“Unless Jim Rutherford and Patrik Allvin pull something out of their hat that we’re not seeing, the answer to that 2C question is probably internal for a little while. Those guys are hard to find. And they are expensive to get,” insider Elliotte Friedman said on Donnie and Dhali – The Team.

Play the waiting game

It’s probably not what fans in Vancouver want to hear, but the truth isn’t always the nicest of statements. The Canucks have been dealt a tough hand, and the best way to play it out is waiting for a prospect to blossom onto the role. For the moment, there isn’t much the organization can do. And if there is, there’s no guarantee it will play out better than trusting the prospects pool.

“Look, Vancouver made a first-round pick: it drafted a center. It’s an organizational need,” Friedman added on the situation in British Columbia. “The best way to solve it is internally, but obviously that’s a few years away.”

In the meantime

If there’s something everybody close to the Canucks organization can agree on, is that last year must be tossed away as soon as possible. Wiping the slate clean is all Vancouver cares for at the moment. Perhaps the player who’d most like to start fresh is Pettersson, who drew a continent-wide spotlight onto his everyday routine which he never asked for. Now, it’s all about flying under the radar.

On that note, Pettersson spoke with media recently and admitted he’s been putting in the work during the offseason. Both on and off the ice. For what Canucks fans are concerned, the center has put on muscle weight (6 kilos/13 pounds, to be precise), hoping it will prove beneficial in the upcoming campaign.

Ring season

Moreover, Pettersson has also added an extra weight he will carry around on his left hand now. More specifically, on his ring finger, as he announced he got married during the summer and back in Sweden. In typical Pettersson fashion, he avoided going into much detail but assured it was the best day of his life.

Now, fans in Vancity can only hope the married life will trickle onto the organization and Pettersson can guide them to the promised land. After all, the Canucks are still among the ring-less franchises in the NHL.