[SportsJunky]

In an Athletic article about the DU program, coach David Carle had this to say about Pettersen.

Mathias Emilio Pettersen is another player you have coming back. What was your thoughts on his freshman year and what do you want to see from him going into his sophomore year?
Emilio did a great job this year. We had a real good end to his year in Muskegon in his last year in junior. We were really excited to have him be a part of our program. Emilio exceeded expectations, I would say. We thought he’d be a good player for us but we didn’t see how much in love he is with Denver and how much he cares about our process, his teammates and winning. He is a DU first guy. It takes sometimes two or three years for guys to get to that level and I think Emilio is on the fast track to doing that. He has a real good awareness of how he fits into the team dynamic and cheering for his teammates and trying to make them better in practice every day but understanding that Denver is bigger than any one person in the group.
Where did you see the most progression in his game?
I think it was his responsibility with and without the puck. Emilio certainly has game-breaking skill and ability to make plays but I think it was choosing his spots when to do that and more of when noticing moments when not to do it. At the end of the shift when he is one guy against four. When we’re up a goal with a minute-and-a-half left in the game. It’s learning how to manage a game and understanding that, “We want you to be yourself and be a skilled offensive player but there is a give and a take to that. You have to manage a game at times.” I think that’s the biggest thing and there was buy-in from him in wanting to get better at that. Then, without the puck, his ability to pressure pucks. Get pucks back. His awareness in his own end with starting to talk and communicate. Stopping and starting. Seeing the puck and seeing his man, I think, just made him a much more responsible player and allowed him to have the puck more. That’s a lot of what we sell to our team: The harder you play without the puck, the more you get to have it. Certainly, when you have it, the game is a lot more fun.