Canucks' Pettersson Leaves Game Vs. Sharks Early

For a second, it seemed as though vintage Elias Pettersson had made a comeback in Vancouver's 4-3 win against the San Jose Sharks on Monday night. He began his night of scoring by potting a rebound, then sniped a quick one past Yaroslav Askarov on a 5-on-3 44 seconds later. However, the most notable part of his night may be the fact that he left the bench early into the third period and did not come out for the rest of the game.

Pettersson's last shift of the game ended at 3:14 into the third period, leaving the team without him for around 17 minutes. After the game, he was announced as one of the three stars of the night, but did not come back out.

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After the game, Canucks Head Coach Rick Tocchet noted that while Pettersson "got banged up" sometime during the second period, he doesn't think it's anything serious. While he went on for one more shift, he eventually exited the game out of caution. Pettersson currently has 10 goals and 18 assists in 34 games played this season.

Towards the end of last season, Pettersson dealt with a bout of knee tendinitis that noticeably impacted his game. Since then, he has adapted to the injury by focusing on how to deal with it during the offseason.

Vancouver plays their next game on Saturday night against the Seattle Kraken. At this moment, it's unknown whether Pettersson will be playing or not.