If he struggles then the Canucks will finish bottom three this season. He's already that important to this team, unfortunately.Reading some of these posts, I really wonder how some would react if Pettersson has the dreaded sophomore jinx, and actually scores at a lower rate than he did as a rookie? Based on his struggles in the last 22 games a year ago, it could happen.
And it doesn't appear that the Canucks hockey braintrust could come to grips with it either.
Anyone who was banking on Pettersson being able to carry this trash heap two years in a row was counting their luck, imo. Same with Markstrom, Horvat, etc.Reading some of these posts, I really wonder how some would react if Pettersson has the dreaded sophomore jinx, and actually scores at a lower rate than he did as a rookie? Based on his struggles in the last 22 games a year ago, it could happen.
And it doesn't appear that the Canucks hockey braintrust could come to grips with it either.
Reading some of these posts, I really wonder how some would react if Pettersson has the dreaded sophomore jinx, and actually scores at a lower rate than he did as a rookie? Based on his struggles in the last 22 games a year ago, it could happen.
And it doesn't appear that the Canucks hockey braintrust could come to grips with it either.
Reading some of these posts, I really wonder how some would react if Pettersson has the dreaded sophomore jinx, and actually scores at a lower rate than he did as a rookie? Based on his struggles in the last 22 games a year ago, it could happen.
And it doesn't appear that the Canucks hockey braintrust could come to grips with it either.
I'm gonna give him another 5 games and then I guess I'll check back in next november and see if the team still sucks (they will, this core is a years of competent management away from being able to even compete for a goddamn playoff spot).I said much the same this summer when everyone was just assuming a huge bump to 90+ points. And sure, that was possible.
But it was also equally possible that he does a Barzal/Keller and struggles under the extra attention and checking he receives as a sophomore.
I said much the same this summer when everyone was just assuming a huge bump to 90+ points. And sure, that was possible.
But it was also equally possible that he does a Barzal/Keller and struggles under the extra attention and checking he receives as a sophomore.
He's supposed to have Boeser, Miller, Horvat, etc...with no backup scoring help behind him in the lineup.
There are numerous 20 year olds that have done that over the. All star players mind you except Toews but if Petterson is elite he will. It is a lot to ask but if he is going to be among the best that is the job. if he is Keller then team has more to do.Teams relying on a 20-year center to put a team on his back and carry it to the 'promised land' are usually doomed to another year in lottery land at the very least. Of course if a single one of Benning's 'foundational players' acquired via the trade or UFA route had actually worked out, then they might have been able to share the scoring burden.
I just hope Pettersson doesn't reach the boiling point when teams check him into the ice, with no backup scoring help behind him in the lineup.
He hasn't been the same to me after that freak accident injury from that idiot Kotkaniemi checking him.
Hopefully EP gets it going. IMO he'll likely break out next season as he will mostly go through a sophomore slump and tight checking this year due to lack of options.
I think he will get it back and then some but it might take him like 20 games.Exactly this. Don’t understand people didn’t pay more attention to how he regressed from pre to post that injury. Blaming “long season”, “opposing players started to pay attention” (as if they weren’t doing that already after the insane hype early on), “he just scored cause dmen wasn’t prepared for him to be that good”, “opposing teams started to give him tougher matchups” (as if they wasn’t already focusing on shutting down Pettersson/Boeser from early fall) etc etc. He was simply not the same player coming back. I know it sounds strange to people who didn’t follow him closely all season since the injury wasn’t seemingly all that bad, but it was very apparent. I think he lost his rythm somehow coming back too early when the knee wasn’t 100% and that he somehow got disturbed by that and couldn’t get his rythm back even when fully healed. His game relies so much on timing that it could be an explanation. Pre Kotka he was playing like the best player in the nhl. The hype was real.
Gold M2B GoldBen Hutton outscoring him in HALF the games so far
Big time sophmore slump unfortunately this season
Well.. at least he didn't show up to camp looking like Jabba the Hut.Ben Hutton outscoring him in HALF the games so far
Big time sophmore slump unfortunately this season
This is not a criticism of Petey, just an observation. He seems to be contained emotionally this year. I see his teammates smiling and celebrating a little when they score, but Petey is reigning it in, staying cool. It's great when he does show that emotion - like that goal mouth effort in St. Louis that allowed Bo to score.
I wonder if this is a deliberate thing on his part, conserving his mental and physical energy so that he won't be spent out early like he was last year. It may just be the pressure he's putting on himself. I hope he can relax a little and just go on instinct.