Vancouver Canucks trade reports shifting towards Pettersson instead of JT Miller now

Cam Robinson of eliteprospects.com tweeded that the Canucks have not been happy with the offers that have swirled around JT Miller and feel that the team would recuperate much better assets if they decided to trade Pettersson instead.

Aside the fact that the Canucks have not received great offers for Miller, the team has been very vocal about Pettersson's play as of late and has not lived up to the level that the Canucks have set for standards.

Rick Dhaliwal and Pierre Lebrun are also reporting that the Canucks are listening to offers on the 26 year old Swedish center.

This season has not gone well for Pettersson after signing his major contract extension that was eight years and worth $11.6 million per season.

Over his past five games he has only registered one assist and currently a - 4 along with no power play goals or short-handed goals.

Through 41 games, he has scored eleven goals with 19 this is for 30 points and is a - 7 which is a sharp difference compared to last season where he was a + 20 with 89 points through 82 games.

The team also has a unique position as Pettersson does not have any trade protection this year and it only will kick in next year which gives the Vancouver Canucks an opportunity to explore the market and potentially look at moving their star.

It's likely a wait and see approach as the March trade deadline nears and with the NHL potentially announcing soon what the salary cap will look like over year to few years from now, that could all dictate on which teams could afford him and who will line up to make an offer.

It's fascinating to watch and there does not appear to be a timetable to when all this will come to an end but it's safe to say that it's affecting the Canucks as they are now out of the playoffs for now.