Saturday night’s game was the first time since last week that the Vancouver Canucks’ J.T. Miller and Elias Pettersson played on the power play together. Even so, the team still lost 5-4 in overtime to the Ottawa Senators. Afterwards, Pettersson spoke to the media.
“I don’t know why people are trying to make s**t up,” he said after the loss.
This quote wasn’t about the game, however. This quote was in response to the supposed “rift” between himself and Miller that has torn through headlines like wildfire since it was addressed by Canucks captain Quinn Hughes and Head Coach Rick Tocchet earlier today.
“I think that both of them have been going through their own struggles this year,” Hughes said. “I believe in both of them, I think they’re both great players and great people.”
Latest From THN’s Vancouver Canucks Site:
“It Is A Family In Here”: Canucks Hughes & Tocchet Address Reported Rift Between Pettersson & Miller
Diving Into Jake DeBrusk’s First 32 Games With The Vancouver Canucks
Canucks Top Forwards Struggling To Generate Offence Over The Past Five Games
“It’s all about the crest. It’s all about as long as I coach, it’s always about the crest,” Tocchet mentioned. “It’s not about the name on the back. You’re going to have arguments. You’re going to have fights.
“It’s my job to make sure that guys have a voice and you move on from sort of stuff,” the coach added.
“To be honest I didn’t really know there was a story,” added Brock Boeser after the loss. “I’m not on Twitter or anything so I don’t see that stuff. I heard some rumblings.”
“It is a family in here, and we just got to continue to push forward and play the way we want to play,” said Hughes.
Vancouver plays their final game before the Christmas break on Monday, December 23. Pick drop is scheduled for 6 p.m. PST.