West Notes: Pettersson, Nill, Jets

One player that was likely intrigued by the eight-year, $78MM extension that Sebastian Aho signed yesterday was Canucks center Elias Pettersson.  Postmedia’s Ben Kuzma suggests that Aho’s deal should only bolster Pettersson’s asking price when discussions about a new deal get underway.  Pettersson had a much better platform season, picking up 39 goals and 63 assists while Aho had 36 tallies and 31 helpers.  Pettersson is also averaging just shy of a point per game for his career while Aho checks in at 0.9.  However, Aho has nearly 200 more NHL appearances under his belt and all eight years of his contract are UFA seasons while Pettersson will have one RFA-eligible year on his next deal.  Despite that, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Pettersson’s camp aiming higher than Aho’s contract when he and the team sit down to discuss a potential extension.

Elsewhere in the Western Conference:

• In an interview with Sean Shapiro of D Magazine, Stars GM Jim Nill acknowledged that he has had discussions with owner Tom Gaglardi about eventually moving into a new role and allowing someone else to take over as GM. Nill signed a two-year extension earlier this week that keeps him under contract through 2025-26 and has been on the job in Dallas since 2013.  But at 65, there has been a belief for a few years now that he’s in the back half of being in that role but since it appears that he’s open to holding a more senior front office position down the road, he could still have a big impact in Dallas beyond his newly-extended contract.
• While the Jets are likely facing a logjam on the back end next season, Scott Billeck of the Winnipeg Sun doesn’t expect the team to be moving away one of their veterans to open up a spot for a younger player. As things stand, Winnipeg has their top six intact from last season, leaving youngsters Logan Stanley, Ville Heinola, Kyle Capobianco, and waiver-eligible Declan Chisholm on the outside looking in.  Currently, the more probable scenario is Capobianco being waived and Heinola, who is waiver-exempt, being sent down, leaving Stanley and Chisholm as projected scratches.  That’s not ideal for a team that could benefit from developing some of their younger options but with the Jets looking to stay competitive in the short-term, them moving a veteran would go against that intent.