Vancouver Canucks beginning goaltender Thatcher Demko gained’t be part of the staff for his or her upcoming five-game street journey, per Thomas Drance of The Athletic. Demko suffered a lower-body harm simply 10 minutes into Vancouver’s 2-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Feb. 8 — the staff’s final sport earlier than the 4-Nations Face-Off break. Drance added that Demko had been designated as out week-to-week and that Demko’s harm isn’t related to the knee harm that held him out for a number of weeks on the finish of final season.
The Canucks turned to backup Kevin Lankinen to switch Demko after his harm. Lankinen posted 21 saves on 22 photographs to steer Vancouver to a win, bringing his season-long document as much as 19-8-7 in 34 appearances. Lankinen has additionally led all Canucks goaltenders with a .905 save share and a pair of.53 goals-against-average. He’ll be the assumed starter when the Canucks return from break, however their upcoming road-trip options two units of back-to-back video games. That tight schedule will possible open the door for Arturs Silovs to make his personal spot begin.
Silovs hasn’t performed since late November after showing in seven of Vancouver’s first 22 video games. The 23-year-old Latvian posted a 1-4-1 document, .847 Sv%, and 4.11 GAA in these appearances, prompting a fast return to the minor leagues. He discovered extra steady footing in Abbotsford, posting a 10-4-0 document and .906 Sv%. Silovs upheld these numbers by way of a number of journeys to function Lankinen’s backup when Demko missed time in January. He may now be rewarded for ready with sport time — however isn’t more likely to claw above the pair of veterans forward of him on the depth chart in what must be a minimal position.
Lankinen must be a stout fill-in on the heels of his robust season, however Vancouver will nonetheless absolutely miss Demko. The oft-injured starter was lastly discovering his groove earlier than the Canucks went on break, marked by a 3-1-0 document and .952 Sv% in his final 4 wholesome video games. That streak was a welcome turnaround for Demko after he began his season with a dismal 3-5-3 document and .867 Sv% in 12 video games. He appeared to want an prolonged runway as he labored his manner again from a long-term ailment — and now lands in an analogous and premature scenario. The Canucks will return from their prolonged street journey on March 5, then rapidly face 4 video games throughout a six-day stretch.
