Highly-touted prospect Elias Pettersson was selected by the Vancouver Canucks 5th overall in 2017. With the selection, fans eagerly awaited his debut.
It didn’t take long for Pettersson to impress the Canucks’ faithful. During Vancouver’s home opener, the young star scored a goal and added an assist, en route to a 5-2 victory over the Calgary Flames.
Although Pettersson sniped home a beautiful goal and is a player many fans want to see, it doesn’t mean the rookie will be treated differently than other prospects in the organization or league.
Pettersson gets rookie treatment from #Canucks pic.twitter.com/K4XEHb6Q4B
— Jeff Paterson (@patersonjeff) October 4, 2018
It’s tradition to send the young rook on the ice first for warmups and Pettersson was no exception. The young forward hit the ice with speed and fired a puck at the goal. However, no other Canucks’ player was on the ice.
Pettersson skated in his lonesome and I’m sure the Canucks got a good kick out of it. It’s a timely tradition in hockey. As a young rookie leading the team onto the ice, you know you’ll be alone but it’s something you have to get out of the way before your first NHL game.
— Scott Perrie (@scottperrie) October 4, 2018
Pettersson was aware of the tradition around the league but didn’t know it would be coming in the Canucks’ home opener. He stated that it wasn’t fun skating alone.
https://twitter.com/Canucks/status/1047714663050301441
Next game I’m sure he’ll get to join the boys on the ice right away. He just has to make sure no one entices him to hit the ice first!
The first of many for Pettersson! ? pic.twitter.com/TNNEpeJnrv
— Y – Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) October 4, 2018
