NHL fans may notice a familiar name on Sweden's roster at the 2023 World Juniors. Skating for the Swedes is a player by the name of Elias Pettersson.
No, not that Elias Pettersson. A different Elias Pettersson.
While the current Canucks stars did in fact play for Sweden at the World Juniors, that was over five years ago. He played on Sweden's U20 team at the 2017 and 2018 World Juniors, winning a silver medal in his second tournament. At 24 years old, Pettersson aged out of the tournament a while ago.
This one is a different Elias Pettersson. The one currently playing in the World Juniors is a defenseman and is six years younger than the Vancouver center.
While he still has a ways to go to get to the status of his countryman playing in the NHL, Pettersson is aiming to accomplish something the older player with the same name could not — win a World Juniors gold medal.
MORE: Team Sweden roster, schedule, scores at 2023 World Juniors
Here is everything you need to know about Sweden's Elias Pettersson at the 2023 World Juniors.
What team does Elias Pettersson play for?
Pettersson plays in the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) with Örebro HK. He is currently in his second season in Sweden's top professional league.
He was born in Västerås and played in their youth program all the way through the U16 level. However, in 2020, he made a switch to Örebro, joining their U18 team and working his way up to their professional club.
Last season, Petterson played in games for the organization's U18, U20 and SHL teams. This year, he has seen action in both the SHL and U20 leagues.
At the SHL level, he has skated in 24 contests for the 2022-23 season, recording a goal and an assist.
What NHL team drafted Elias Pettersson?
The Canucks just had to go and make everyone's lives a bit harder.
With one Elias Petterson already in the organization, Vancouver doubled it this past summer, drafting the other Petterson in the third round of the 2023 NHL Draft. It made for quite the social moment, as fans realized that the Spider-Man meme was coming to life before their very eyes.
So yes, there are now two Elias Petterssons in the Canucks' system. It could make for a broadcaster's nightmare if the two eventually get to dress in a game together.
Is Elias Pettersson related to Elias Pettersson?
While the two share the same name, the Petterssons are not related.
At the 2023 NHL Draft, Pettersson said that he had never met the older NHL star before. However, when asked who his favorite player was, Pettersson admitted that it is, in fact, the other Pettersson.
You’ll be shocked to hear this, but Elias Pettersson’s favourite player is Elias Pettersson. #Canucks
— Thomas Drance (@ThomasDrance) July 8, 2022
Wore the number 40 because of Elias Pettersson and now they're teammates 😊@ToyotaPacific | #Canucks pic.twitter.com/PSLAsjzUp9
— Vancouver Canucks (@Canucks) July 8, 2022
