Canucks Summer Faceoff: Which is more likely – Pettersson 85 points or Kane 45 points?

Less than a month away from training camp, it’s time to start thinking about the way the 2025-26 season may unfold for members of the Vancouver Canucks in JPat’s Canucks Summer Faceoff.

For the second straight year, CanucksArmy is conducting a late-summer thought exercise. All week, we will present a pair of options and ask you which is more likely to occur. Without the benefit of a crystal ball, of course, it’s impossible to know how things will go. So we will present cases for both scenarios, and we’re looking for your gut reaction to which one is more likely to happen by season’s end.

Elias Pettersson records 85 points or Evander Kane produces 45 points?

Pettersson

Nobody can truly know which version of Elias Pettersson will return for his eighth NHL season. At this stage, the Canucks would likely welcome the point-per-game player of his first few seasons in the league. But after struggling since the 2024 All-Star break, Pettersson needs to find a way to pop again and to positively impact games for the Canucks. Hopefully, a full and healthy summer of training will help him get back closer to being the player he was when he had back-to-back 102 and 89 point seasons rather than the one that struggled to score 15 goals and 45 points last season.

Pettersson understands the stakes given his importance to the hockey club and the salary he is being paid. The team needs him to put the recent past behind him and return to the level that allowed him to be a difference maker for a long stretch prior to last season. The hope has to be that he plays with more pace and finds a way to get a little more zip on his shot. Skating speed and shot velocity were both massive issues for Pettersson last season. A new head coach has offered a clean slate, and we’ll see how Pettersson respon ds with Adam Foote in charge. 

Kane

In his last full NHL season, Evander Kane recorded 44 points. That was two seasons ago, and it was as a member of the Edmonton Oilers. Now 34, Kane begins a new chapter as a member of the Canucks. He should be put in a position to produce. But to get to 45 points, he’ll need to do something he hasn’t done since back-to-back seasons in San Jose in 2019-20 and again in 2020-21.

Kane has never been a huge point producer. His best NHL season was 57 points in Winnipeg in 2011-12. When on the top of his game, he’s a physical force who puts a lot of pucks on net. And that’s what the Canucks are looking for from Kane next season. Where he plays will surely contribute to his production levels. Can he find chemistry with Filip Chytil if he slots into a second-line role? Will he get first-unit power play time? There are many questions surrounding Evander Kane heading into his first season in Vancouver. Is it too much to expect him to have his best offensive season in five years at this stage of his career? It feels like it may be.

Which is more likely to happen?

For Elias Pettersson to reach 85 points next season, he basically has to double his output from a highly disappointing 2024-25. That seems like a massive leap to expect. It feels like getting 75 points out of EP40 would represent a solid rebound from his struggles. But perhaps he’ll hit the ground running and be out to prove his doubters wrong that the 102-point season of 2023-24 will stand as an outlier. I’m sure the Canucks would welcome a motivated Pettersson back to the fold with open arms.

As for Evander Kane, it seems like 40 points would be a reasonable target for a veteran player who sat out all of last season to allow his body to recover from various injuries and ailments. Getting to 45 points? We’ll need to see it to believe it. It is a contract year, so that should serve as added motivation. As long as Kane shows up consistently, plays hard and avoids off-ice distractions, he should be able to offer the Canucks elements that they can use. 

Verdict

Elias Pettersson is more likely to reach 85 points.

What do you think, Canucks fans? What’s your verdict: Will Elias Pettersson reach 85 points, or will Evander Kane reach 45?