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This assist is another example of Elias Pettersson’s genius

The Vancouver Canucks have been better than expected so far in 2018-19, but it still sees like this could be a season full of growing pains.

That said, watching a hit-or-miss team that happens to be a ton of fun sure beats a dour team seemingly skating in quicksand, right?

Most obviously, there have been copious moments of sheer joy created by Vancouver’s one-two punch of wunderkinds in Elias Pettersson and Brock Boeser. You can throw around plenty of superlatives regarding Pettersson, but one of his more impressive accomplishments is dominating highlight reels even more frequently than Boeser, the defending All-Star Game MVP.

Thursday provided the latest jaw-dropping moment ... actually, Pettersson provided more than just a great moment.

The final part of the video above is the no-look pass that will make you do a double-take. It really is the highlight, and it’s plausible that it will rank among Boeser’s easiest goals (beyond empty-netters?).

But the full play is a real treat, and argues that he’s truly beyond his years.

As you can see, he intercepted a Golden Knights pass in the Vegas zone, a truly alert takeaway. Nate Schmidt takes Pettersson down, yet he doesn’t give up, making that sublime pass.

Can you really blame Boeser for grinning at that display? Canucks fans probably were smiling pretty widely there, too.

Other great early moments from the Canucks’ rad rookie

MORE: Your 2018-19 NHL on NBC TV schedule

James O’Brien is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @cyclelikesedins.