<p><em>Welcome back to our countdown of the top Vancouver Canucks news stories of 2024, where we will be counting down our most-read stories of the year in the days leading up to 2025.</em></p>
<div class="bam-inline-promotion-block" data-max-length="2" data-placement-id="2111" data-context="web-content-promocard" data-property-id="329"></div>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Just in the nick of time! I assembled our list of the top Vancouver Canucks news stories of the year in early December but had to reshuffle the list a bit after this one jumped into the number four spot in mid-December.</p>
<p>And since it&#8217;s likely still fresh in your mind, this one won&#8217;t require the same extensive trip down memory lane that the rest of our stories in this series have. But in case you need a quick refresher, here it is.</p>
<p>Just a week ago, after the Canucks returned home from a quick two game road trip in Vegas and Utah, Quinn Hughes and Rick Tocchet addressed the rumoured rift between JT Miller and Elias Pettersson.</p>
<p>Now, this &#8220;rift&#8221; dates back years, with Bruce Boudreau admitting he thought it even predated his tenure in Vancouver. The rumour in December was that these issues had resurfaced, with Sportsnet&#8217;s Elliotte Friedman reporting that the rift between the two star players had &#8220;started to take its toll&#8221; on others in the organization.</p>
<p>Hughes and Tocchet didn&#8217;t shy away from the topic, with Hughes saying:</p>
<blockquote><p>“Yeah I mean, I think that it’s been a lot of learning for everybody in here. Obviously, not to beat around the bush, everybody knows what the reports are out there, but I think that everyone expects a lot from each other. There’s times I get upset with Millsy; there’s times I get upset with Petey; there’s times I get upset with Hronek. That doesn’t mean I don’t love those guys and vice versa. I’m going to make some bad plays; they’re going to make a play where I wish they saw me here or saw me there, but over the course of playing together for six years, I think those things are normal; they’re going to happen&#8230;</p>
<p>“100% I believe it’s workable, and I know it’s workable. We saw it last year. I think that both of them have been going through their own struggles this year. I believe in both of them; they’re both great players and great people. Like I said, there’s times where we all get into it but it is a family in here and we just have to continue to push forward and play the way we want to play. If there’s a positive looking forward to this, I think Petey and Millsy will both say they haven’t played their best hockey this year and we’re still where we are in the standings. That’s a positive thing that we can look at. Two of the best players out there can be better.”</p>
<p>Tocchet added:</p>
<p>“Listen, it’s all about the crest. As long as I coach, it’s all about the crest. It’s not about what’s on the back. You’re going to have arguments; you’re going to have fights. I’ve been fortunate to be [in] the Stanley Cup [finals] three times, two as a coach, one as a player. There’s always been something that has galvanized a team. Whether people are bickering or complaining, it happens all the time.</p>
<p>&#8220;It’s my job to make sure that, you know, guys have a voice and you move on from certain stuff. But, you also need to be mature, too. You don’t have to play PlayStation together or go to dinner together, but [if] it’s your turn to go to the net, go to the net. It’s really what it comes down to.”</p></blockquote>
<p>Even though this story was just a week ago, everyone is already very clearly eager to move on from it (which is why I had a laugh to myself when I saw it made its way into our countdown at the 11th hour).</p>
<p>Winning cures all, and let&#8217;s hope the Canucks can build off their win vs. the San Jose Sharks when they take on the Seattle Kraken tonight.</p>
<div class="jetpack-video-wrapper"><iframe loading="lazy" title="Quinn Hughes and Rick Tocchet speak about reports surrounding Elias Pettersson and JT Miller" width="1424" height="801" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/oVMuT0O-qwY?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe></div>
<p><a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/vancouver-canucks-hughes-tocchet-speak-about-reports-surrounding-elias-pettersson-jt-miller">You can read the full story by clicking here</a>, and be sure to tune in each day until December 31st for the rest of our countdown!</p>
<p>Our list so far:</p>
<p><a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/top-vancouver-canucks-stories-of-2024-tocchet-tries-not-to-tamper-asked-about-sidney-crosby">#10: Tocchet tries not to tamper when asked about trading for Sidney Crosby</a><br />
<a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/top-vancouver-canucks-stories-2024-nikita-zadorov-tries-avoid-fine">#9: Nikita Zadorov tries to avoid a fine</a><br />
<a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/top-stories-2024-when-vancouver-canucks-stranded-buffalo-due-winter-weather">#8: When the Canucks&#8217; team plane was stranded in Buffalo</a><br />
<a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/top-vancouver-canucks-stories-2024-demko-calls-myers-re-signing-best-day-his-life">#7: Demko calls Myers re-signing the best day of his life</a><br />
<a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/top-vancouver-canucks-stories-2024-tyler-myers-breaks-leon-draisaitl-rib">#6: Myers breaks Draisaitl&#8217;s ribs</a><br />
<a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/top-vancouver-canucks-stories-2024-sedins-beat-every-prospect-up-grouse-grind">#5: Sedins beat every prospect up the Grouse Grind</a><br />
#4: Tocchet and Hughes address the Miller-Pettersson rift</p>
<p><strong>Sponsored by bet365</strong></p>
<div class="bam-inline-promotion" data-property-id="329" data-promotion-id="19111" data-context="web-content-promocard"></div>
<p>&nbsp;</p>


<em>Welcome back to our countdown of the top Vancouver Canucks news stories of 2024, where we will be counting down our most-read stories of the year in the days leading up to 2025.</em>
<div class="bam-inline-promotion-block" data-max-length="2" data-placement-id="2111" data-context="web-content-promocard" data-property-id="329"></div>
&nbsp;

Just in the nick of time! I assembled our list of the top Vancouver Canucks news stories of the year in early December but had to reshuffle the list a bit after this one jumped into the number four spot in mid-December.

And since it's likely still fresh in your mind, this one won't require the same extensive trip down memory lane that the rest of our stories in this series have. But in case you need a quick refresher, here it is.

Just a week ago, after the Canucks returned home from a quick two game road trip in Vegas and Utah, Quinn Hughes and Rick Tocchet addressed the rumoured rift between JT Miller and Elias Pettersson.

Now, this "rift" dates back years, with Bruce Boudreau admitting he thought it even predated his tenure in Vancouver. The rumour in December was that these issues had resurfaced, with Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reporting that the rift between the two star players had "started to take its toll" on others in the organization.

Hughes and Tocchet didn't shy away from the topic, with Hughes saying:
<blockquote>“Yeah I mean, I think that it’s been a lot of learning for everybody in here. Obviously, not to beat around the bush, everybody knows what the reports are out there, but I think that everyone expects a lot from each other. There’s times I get upset with Millsy; there’s times I get upset with Petey; there’s times I get upset with Hronek. That doesn’t mean I don’t love those guys and vice versa. I’m going to make some bad plays; they’re going to make a play where I wish they saw me here or saw me there, but over the course of playing together for six years, I think those things are normal; they’re going to happen...

“100% I believe it’s workable, and I know it’s workable. We saw it last year. I think that both of them have been going through their own struggles this year. I believe in both of them; they’re both great players and great people. Like I said, there’s times where we all get into it but it is a family in here and we just have to continue to push forward and play the way we want to play. If there’s a positive looking forward to this, I think Petey and Millsy will both say they haven’t played their best hockey this year and we’re still where we are in the standings. That’s a positive thing that we can look at. Two of the best players out there can be better.”

Tocchet added:

“Listen, it’s all about the crest. As long as I coach, it’s all about the crest. It’s not about what’s on the back. You’re going to have arguments; you’re going to have fights. I’ve been fortunate to be [in] the Stanley Cup [finals] three times, two as a coach, one as a player. There’s always been something that has galvanized a team. Whether people are bickering or complaining, it happens all the time.

"It’s my job to make sure that, you know, guys have a voice and you move on from certain stuff. But, you also need to be mature, too. You don’t have to play PlayStation together or go to dinner together, but [if] it’s your turn to go to the net, go to the net. It’s really what it comes down to.”</blockquote>
Even though this story was just a week ago, everyone is already very clearly eager to move on from it (which is why I had a laugh to myself when I saw it made its way into our countdown at the 11th hour).

Winning cures all, and let's hope the Canucks can build off their win vs. the San Jose Sharks when they take on the Seattle Kraken tonight.

https://youtu.be/oVMuT0O-qwY?si=0AsOtGs-jxsFOUj3

<a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/vancouver-canucks-hughes-tocchet-speak-about-reports-surrounding-elias-pettersson-jt-miller">You can read the full story by clicking here</a>, and be sure to tune in each day until December 31st for the rest of our countdown!

Our list so far:

<a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/top-vancouver-canucks-stories-of-2024-tocchet-tries-not-to-tamper-asked-about-sidney-crosby">#10: Tocchet tries not to tamper when asked about trading for Sidney Crosby</a>
<a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/top-vancouver-canucks-stories-2024-nikita-zadorov-tries-avoid-fine">#9: Nikita Zadorov tries to avoid a fine</a>
<a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/top-stories-2024-when-vancouver-canucks-stranded-buffalo-due-winter-weather">#8: When the Canucks' team plane was stranded in Buffalo</a>
<a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/top-vancouver-canucks-stories-2024-demko-calls-myers-re-signing-best-day-his-life">#7: Demko calls Myers re-signing the best day of his life</a>
<a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/top-vancouver-canucks-stories-2024-tyler-myers-breaks-leon-draisaitl-rib">#6: Myers breaks Draisaitl's ribs</a>
<a href="https://canucksarmy.com/news/top-vancouver-canucks-stories-2024-sedins-beat-every-prospect-up-grouse-grind">#5: Sedins beat every prospect up the Grouse Grind</a>
#4: Tocchet and Hughes address the Miller-Pettersson rift

<strong>Sponsored by bet365</strong>
<div class="bam-inline-promotion" data-property-id="329" data-promotion-id="19111" data-context="web-content-promocard"></div>
&nbsp;

Tocchet says Pettersson and Hughes officially out for Canucks vs. Kraken

NHL odds, betting preview (Dec. 28): Kraken vs. Canucks

Sawyer Mynio during the Vancouver Canucks' 4-2 win over the Winnipeg Jets at the 2024 Young Stars Classic from Penticton, BC.

Recent articles from David Quadrelli

Breaking News