Marcus Pettersson and Drew O'Connor were traded to the Vancouver Canucks by the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday for forward Danton Heinen and defenseman Vincent Desharnais.
Pittsburgh also received forward prospect Melvin Fernstrom and a conditional first-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft, which Vancouver had acquired earlier in the day in the trade that sent forward J.T. Miller to the New York Rangers.
The 2025 draft pick is top-13 protected and will transfer to 2026 if it falls in the top 13.
“We wish both Danton and Vinny all the best in Pittsburgh and thank them for their contributions this season,” Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin said. “We are really happy to add to the depth of our team with the acquisitions of Marcus and Drew. Marcus has good size (6-foot-5, 174 pounds), reach, and makes solid decisions with the puck while Drew is an intelligent player with versatility and a bigger frame (6-4, 209).”
Pettersson has 18 points (three goals, 15 assists) in 47 games this season. The 28-year-old defenseman is in the final season of a five-year contract ($4,025,175 average annual value) he signed with Pittsburgh on Jan. 28, 2020.
Selected by the Anaheim Ducks in the second round (No. 38) of the 2014 NHL Draft, Pettersson has 151 points (17 goals, 134 assists) in 491 games for the Ducks and Penguins. He has four assists in 25 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
O’Connor has 16 points (six goals, 10 assists) in 53 games this season. The 26-year-old forward has 66 points (30 goals, 36 assists) in 210 games since signing with Pittsburgh as an undrafted free agent on March 10, 2020.
O'Connor is in the final season of a two-year, $1.85 million contract he signed with the Penguins on Aug. 2, 2023.
Heinen has 18 points (six goals, 12 assists) in 51 games this season, his first with the Canucks after signing a two-year, $4.5 million contract on July 1, 2024.
Selected by the Boston Bruins in the fourth round (No. 116) of the 2014 draft, the 29-year-old has 230 points (93 goals, 137 assists) in 538 games with four teams, including 55 points (26 goals, 29 assists) in 141 games over two seasons with Pittsburgh from 2021-23.
Desharnais has three assists in 34 games this season, which was also his first with Vancouver after signing a two-year, $4 million contract on July 1, 2024. The 28-year-old, who was selected by the Edmonton Oilers in the seventh round (No. 183) of the 2016 NHL Draft, has 19 points (one goal, 18 assists) in 148 games for the Oilers and Canucks.
Fernstrom, 18, was selected by the Canucks in the third round (No. 93) of the 2024 NHL Draft.
“[The] trade continues to move us in the direction set one year ago, which is to continue to add young prospects, young players, and draft capital to the Penguins as we chart our course to return the club back into contention as urgently as possible,” Penguins GM Kyle Dubas said. “We are pleased to add Danton Heinen back to the Penguins and Vincent Desharnais to the club and look forward to seeing both in uniform in the coming days. The addition of Melvin Fernstrom also gives us a prospect that was highly regarded at the 2024 NHL Draft, and the Rangers’ first-round draft pick provides us with another strong asset that we can use to acquire an elite young player in the draft or via trade.
"But obviously, very difficult to move two players and people like Marcus and Drew. Obviously, very high-character, high-quality, very popular people in the locker room. But pending free agents and, with where we're at, we just have to continue to move down the path of the mission that we've set out for the last year or so. ... It's sad to see Marcus and Drew go, but that's the hard thing about this position and this business at times."
The Canucks (23-18-10), who lost 5-3 at the Dallas Stars on Friday, are fifth in the Pacific Division. They next play on Sunday, when they host the Detroit Red Wings (8 p.m. ET; SNP, TVAS, FDSNDET).
The Penguins (21-24-8) are last in the Metropolitan Division. They will host the Nashville Predators on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; FDSNSO, SN-PIT).
NHL.com independent correspondent Wes Crosby contributed to this report
