Pettersson could get boost from addition to Canucks penalty kill

VANCOUVER -- Elias Pettersson killing penalties for the Vancouver Canucks may not be an obvious way to help the forward out of a scoring slump, but that's what new coach Bruce Boudreau is trying.

Pettersson was part of a revamped penalty kill used by Boudreau in the coach's first game, a 4-0 win against the Los Angeles Kings on Monday. Pettersson likely will remain part of that unit when the Canucks host the Boston Bruins on Wednesday (9 p.m. ET; SN, NESN, ESPN+, NHL LIVE).
He had one assist and two shots on goal in 17:06 of ice time and drew a penalty shot driving to the net while killing a penalty. He didn't convert, but looked more engaged and dynamic than he has much of this season.
Pettersson played 39 seconds on the penalty kill but had an impact.
"I think that meant a lot to 'Petey,' honestly," defenseman Quinn Hughes said Tuesday. "When you give a player like that a chance to do that, he'll go through the wall for you. An expanded role is good for guys like that. It gives them confidence to know the coach trusts them and wants to play them."
The Canucks' struggling young players, especially Pettersson, rediscovering their confidence could go a long way to helping turn things around after Vancouver started the season 8-15-2, leading to the firing of Green, assistant coach Nolan Baumgartner, general manager Jim Benning and assistant general manager John Weisbrod on Sunday.
In 13 games before the changes, Vancouver went 3-9-1 with little offensive impact from key forwards like Pettersson (four points; two goals, two assists), Brock Boeser (four assists) and Bo Horvat (three points; two goals, one assist).

Boudreau pulled Boeser aside during his first morning skate Monday, reminded him of all the goals he scored against the Minnesota Wild when Boudreau coached them, and asked him to shoot more. Boeser scored his first goal in 14 games and had an assist in the win against the Kings.
Pettersson, who signed a three-year, $22 million contract ($7.35 million average annual value) on Oct. 3, has scored 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in 26 games this season. His average of 0.50 points per game is down from the 0.93 points he averaged his first three NHL seasons (153 points in 165 games).
"It's like a do-over," Boudreau said. "It's like golf. You play the first nine holes and shoot 52 but you're a 4 handicap and you come to the back nine and go, 'OK, I got another chance.' Sometimes new coaches come in and they put you in different positions, different roles, and it works for you. But it's like a do-over, like you've had a mulligan."
That includes using skilled players like Pettersson to try to fix a penalty kill that was last in the NHL at 64.6 percent before the coaching changes, and the worst in the NHL in a team's first 25 games since 1977-78, when power-play opportunities began being tracked.
Much like a higher-pressure forecheck at even strength that seemed to energize players like Pettersson and Boeser on Monday, the Canucks were more aggressive in going 2-for-2 on the penalty kill against the Kings. It's a style initiated by new assistant coach Scott Walker, who was hired the same day as Boudreau, and one that requires four sets of forwards for quick changes and high pace, which led to Pettersson being added to the penalty kill.
"You look at good teams, a lot of their best offensive players are also better killers," Boudreau said. "They get more ice time and they feel more into it, so it's a good thing as long as they're committed to doing the right things defensively."
Boudreau said Boeser will be next, and Hughes said he's also asked to kill penalties.
"The success hadn't been there with anybody, so we're trying different things, and I'm a big believer in if I ask a player and he says, 'I'd really like to do this. I think I'm capable of doing this,' I want to put the onus on them and give him a chance," Boudreau said. "That way either they succeed or they shut up, one of the two things."