The worst nightmare for many Vancouver Canucks fans came true during Thursday’s game against the Seattle Kraken.
Star goalie Thatcher Demko left midway through the second period with an apparent injury. He stopped 11 of the first 12 shots he saw, including some very dangerous chances, before heading down the tunnel.
While it’s not obvious what the injury is at this point in time, he did make a tough save right before leaving and pushed off his left knee which could’ve given him trouble. He also was involved in a collision with teammate Noah Juulsen earlier which could’ve been the cause, although it’s all speculation at this point.
A closer look at the play where Thatcher Demko potentially got hurt. Ends up getting clipped by… Noah Juulsen.
Not much else to say really. 😑 #Canucks pic.twitter.com/8ayztPIknc— Lachlan Irvine (@LachInTheCrease) January 3, 2025
Demko left the game right after the Canucks took a 2-1 lead on a Conor Garland goal. Kevin Lankinen took Demko’s spot and subsequently made a couple of huge saves during his first few minutes in the game. The Finnish netminder has been great for the Canucks this season and has helped steady the ship during Demko’s absence.
It’s just the seventh start of the season for Demko who missed the beginning of the season working his way back from a knee injury suffered in last year’s playoffs. The American goalie was dealing with a rare popliteus injury which had never been found in an NHL player before.
The 29-year-old finally made his season debut on December 10 against the St. Louis Blues. Since then he’s managed a 2-1-3 record, a 3.43 goals-against-average, and an .879% save percentage, far below his regular standard but to be expected considering his long absence.
The Canucks are already dealing with multiple injured stars. Both Elias Pettersson and Quinn Hughes missed their second consecutive game and look to be “week-to-week.” The club has been unable to catch a break so far this season as other big contributors, like Brock Boeser and Filip Hronek, have also missed significant chunks of time.