There would be real dissensions within the Vancouver Canucks team and the members of the organization did not try to escape.
Over the past few days, several rumors of disagreements between center players JT Miller and Elias Pettersson have surfaced. The origin of their disagreement is unknown, but it seems serious enough that head coach Rick Tocchet has decided to no longer send them on the ice together.
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Usually playing on the first wave of the numerical advantage, the two men were separated. Sportsnet insider Elliotte Friedman even suggested a trade involving Pettersson this week, with the Swede identified as the problematic element.
“Whether people argue or complain, it’s my job to make sure the guys get along and we can move on,” Tocchet explained at a press briefing on Saturday. “But you also have to be mature. You don’t have to play PlayStation together, you don’t have to go to dinner together, but when it’s your turn to go to the net, you go to the net.”
“The important thing is the logo. It's always the logo that matters, not the name behind the jersey. You will have arguments, you will have fights,” added the pilot.
Tocchet thus seems determined that this alleged internal crisis does not affect the product on the ice. Despite ups and downs, the Canucks are in the playoff picture.
Arguments happen
Captain Quinn Hughes also commented on the situation, saying he and his teammates had high expectations of each other.
“There are times I'm mad at 'Millsy,' times I'm mad at 'Petey,' times I'm mad at [Filip] Hronek. That doesn’t mean I don’t like these guys and vice versa,” said the defender.
Beginning in November, Miller was absent for just under a month for “personal reasons.” Even though he seems far from the level of play that allowed him to amass 103 points last season, he has obtained 19 points in 22 games so far.
Only Hughes (37 points) is ahead of Pettersson among the Canucks. The 26-year-old forward has 26 points on his record and has a differential of -4.
The Canucks face the Ottawa Senators in the evening at Rogers Arena.
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