The Vancouver Canucks should consider themselves lucky in the goaltending department, as they currently have Thatcher Demko, Kevin Lankinen, and Artūrs Šilovs within their organization. Year after year, the team receives solid goaltending regardless of any injuries or issues that arise. It’s been this way virtually since Roberto Luongo suited up for his first game as a Canuck. However, one of the negatives that come with having multiple great goaltenders is not being able to play them both. After the events of the 2024–25 season, Vancouver has found themselves in a bit of a goaltending conundrum.
Demko is the goaltender who has been with the Canucks the longest, having been selected 36th overall by the team in the 2014 NHL Draft. Widely recognized within the fanbase as the “goaltender of the future” early on, Demko made his mark particularly during the 2020 Bubble Playoffs, in which he extended his team’s postseason run to Game 7 of the Pacific Division Finals with a .985 SV% and a 0.64 GAA. He finished second in voting for the Vezina Trophy in 2023–24 after registering a 2.45 GAA and five shutouts in 51 games played.
Injuries forced Demko to the sidelines for the better part of March 2024 to December 2024, as well as parts of 2025. Because he missed so much time, trade talks began to catch fire, especially given the play of Lankinen and Šilovs. Having been brought in only a couple of weeks before the start of the 2024–25 season, Lankinen was a new face within the organization, but quickly established himself as a force in the net. He shattered career highs in his 51 games played with the Canucks, logging a 2.62 GAA and a .902 SV% as well as four shutouts. As a result, Vancouver signed him to a five-year contract extension in February.
Lankinen’s extension was one of a couple dominoes that helped the Demko trade rumours start circulating. The other was Šilovs, an extremely clutch goaltender who rose to fame during the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs. He slotted in for the injured Demko and Casey DeSmith in Game 4 of the Canucks’ first-round series against the Nashville Predators, backstopping the team to a Game 7 defeat in the Pacific Division Finals. While his regular season numbers with Vancouver dipped a bit, he came up big for the Abbotsford Canucks during their five-round 2025 Calder Cup run. He made 672 saves in 24 games played and logged five shutouts — three of which were in series-clinching wins. These efforts resulted in the goaltender being named MVP of the playoffs.
Why The Canucks Should Sign Thatcher Demko To An Extension On July 1The Vancouver Canucks have quite a few important decision to make during the 2025 off-season. On top of signing free agents, Vancouver can sign extensions with some key players, including goaltender Thatcher Demko. While the Canucks will have a year to lock up the 2024 Vezina runner-up, agreeing to a new contract with Demko sooner rather than later is the better option.
Having these two goaltenders step up in opportune times resulted in Demko’s name being sent around the rumour mill. With a stacked goaltending cabinet, it felt like moving a goaltender would be inevitable for the Canucks. However, earlier today, TSN’s Darren Dreger noted that this may not be the case anymore — at least, not for Demko.
“It changed a little bit as today unfolded,” Dreger said about Demko’s situation on OverDrive earlier today. “It does sound like progress is being made on a multi-year extension.”
Adding to this, Dreger noted that if Vancouver goes down the extension route for Demko, then trading Šilovs would probably be their next best option, seeing as his stock is currently sky-high. Canucks General Manager Patrik Allvin was asked about the Calder Cup Playoff MVP earlier today in a media availability, to which he didn’t quite give a solid answer.
Latest From THN’s Vancouver Canucks Site:
What Will Evander Kane Bring To The Vancouver Canucks?
Vancouver Canucks Trade For Edmonton Oilers Forward Evander Kane
How The 2024-25 Calder Cup-Winning Abbotsford Canucks Were Assembled
“I’m happy for Arty, we know that he’s a really good goalie and this is just justifying that,” he said of his performance in the AHL playoffs. “That being said, we’ve still got a couple of good goalies in the system with Tolopilo and Ty Young that are more than ready to play as well. We’ll see here over the next couple of days, where things go with Thatcher and we’ll make decisions after that.”
Vancouver’s goaltending situation may become clearer once the 2025 NHL Draft and free agency period pass, as that’s when most of the NHL’s moves will occur.
Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, be sure to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum.
Read the full article here