428 Games In, How Does Elias Pettersson's Canucks Career Compare To Pavel Bure's?

On Wednesday night, Vancouver Canucks center Elias Pettersson played his 428th career game. In doing so, he officially tied Pavel Bure for the 24th most regular season games played in franchise history. With this in mind, here is a look at how Bure's and Pettersson's careers looked during their 428 games with the Canucks.

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Pettersson and Bure have had two of the best starts in franchise history. They are the only two players in Vancouver's history to win the Calder Trophy and are two of the three players in franchise history to play at least 20 career games and be above a point per game. Both are also in the top ten for Canucks all-time points and have finished top 20 in Hart Trophy voting. Ultimately, these two superstars have had similar regular-season careers up to this point, with each finding a way to impact the game differently.

Counting statistics is a good place to start the comparison. While Bure has the edge in goals and points, Pettersson leads in assists and has stayed out of the box a lot more frequently. Below is a list of Bure's and Pettersson's regular season statistics through their first 428 games.

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Another way to compare the two is by looking at how many multi-goal, assist, and point games each had. This list is a little surprising, as Bure has more multi-assist games than Pettersson, but Pettersson has more than doubled the number of five-point games Bure had. Below is a full list as per the NHL's record page.

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Lastly, both have played significant roles in some of the most successful teams in franchise history. Bure was part of the 1994 team that made the Stanley Cup Final, while Pettersson was part of the historic 2023-24 team, which recorded the third most points in franchise history and captured Vancouver's first-ever Pacific Division title. While Bure does win this round, as he has been to a Stanley Cup Final, it is important to note that Pettersson has had two fewer playoff chances than Bure, only making the postseason twice compared to Bure's four times.

In the end, these are two elite players that Canucks fans have had the chance to watch develop into star players. They are easily two of the most talented players to ever play in Vancouver and have created highlight reel moments that are among the best in franchise history. If Pettersson can keep producing and eventually take the team to a Stanley Cup Final, his jersey could one day join Bure's in the rafters.