December 13th, 2025
Jaden Teja
You could blame a multitude of things for the Canucks’ struggles, but a lot of them aren’t about their play on the ice. A huge reason the Canucks are where they are right now is their roster construction. You can talk about their center depth or weak bottom six all you want, but one of the biggest issues has been their goaltending, not just performance, but also how they handled the contract situations of Thatcher Demko, Kevin Lankinen, and even Arturs Silovs.
Vancouver was so lucky to have Roberto Luongo between the pipes for eight years, giving them elite goaltending night in and night out. Luongo was a workhorse, a dying breed in the modern NHL, playing more than 60 games in four of his eight seasons in Vancouver. Once Luongo was traded, the Canucks had multiple goalies fill the starting role, Eddie Lack, Ryan Miller, and Jacob Markstrom, until they finally found an elite number-one goalie again.
Thatcher Demko was drafted 36th overall in 2014 to be that guy. He was the earliest goaltender the Canucks had drafted since Cory Schneider went 26th overall in 2004. Demko is an elite goalie when he plays… which leads to the issue. Demko has had injury problems since he entered the NHL. Your best ability is availability, and Demko is the polar opposite of that. Again, Demko is one of the best goalies in the NHL and the type of goalie who can steal you games and win you cups, but he has missed 119 games since 2022–23. That includes the 12 playoff games he missed in 2024. I’m sorry I had to bring that up, it hurts me too, trust me.
The biggest problem the Canucks had to face was his knee injury suffered against the Nashville Predators in the playoffs, because it was an injury no NHL goalie had ever dealt with before. The uncertainty of Demko’s health was the talk of the 2024 offseason.
Arturs Silovs had a great playoff run filling in for Demko, taking the Canucks all the way to Game 7 of the Western Conference Semi-Finals… or did he? Silovs had some great games and came up big multiple times. Like you, I’ll never forget his series-clinching shutout in Game 6 against Nashville or his 42-save performance in Game 3 against Edmonton. But Silovs finished the postseason with only a .898 save percentage, a 2.91 goals-against average, and a -0.2 goals saved above expected, not exactly a stellar stat line by any means.
Still, many people thought Silovs was ready to make a full-time jump to the NHL. He signed a two-year, $850K extension with the Canucks in the offseason, and with Demko not ready to start the season, Silovs was thrust into the starting role on opening night. The biggest flaw in his game was puck tracking on long-range shots, and teams quickly picked him apart with simple point shots. It became clear Silovs was not ready to be an everyday NHL starter. He finished the season with a .861 save percentage, a 3.65 GAA, and -10.2 goals saved above expected.
However, the Canucks weren’t completely sunk in goal because late-free-agency signing Kevin Lankinen played really well for Vancouver until Demko returned. Lankinen went 13-4-4 in Demko’s absence and posted two shutouts. The thing was, Lankinen had been a career backup up to that point, so nobody knew how he would play with a starter’s workload.
Demko went down with another injury in the middle of February. With all the uncertainty around his injury and future in Vancouver, the Canucks inked Lankinen to a five-year contract extension worth $4.5 million per season. They also gave him a full no-movement clause for the first two seasons in what was a total panic move. Committing to Lankinen for so long and giving him starting-goalie money after only 34 games with the team reeked of desperation. Then Lankinen struggled down the crucial stretch of the season, and it seemed like the workload had caught up to him.
Demko’s health status was still up in the air during the summer, but there was some optimism. There were also reports that Demko wanted to stay in Vancouver and wanted an extension. So the Canucks gave him one, a three-year extension worth $8.5 million per season with a full no-movement clause. Yet again, a hefty price to pay for a goalie with major health concerns and it looks even worse after committing to Lankinen, leaving the Canucks with $13 million wrapped up in their goalies. When Demko’s extension kicks in next year, he will be tied for the third-highest-paid goalie in the league. Who is he tied with, you ask? The reigning Hart and Vezina Trophy winner, Connor Hellebuyck. That comparison alone makes the contract look worse, especially for a guy who may get hurt getting out of bed in the morning.
After the Canucks drafted Alexei Medvedev 47th overall this year, the writing was on the wall for Silovs, who was no longer waiver-exempt, and he was traded to Pittsburgh.
Demko looked healthy and ready to start this season, and there was optimism around Lankinen. On paper, the Canucks had one of the better goaltending tandems in the league. Unfortunately, games are not played on paper. Demko has played only 10 games this season, and his long-term health is still in question (pretend to be surprised). Lankinen has an .878 save percentage and a 3.49 goals-against average. Both of their extensions have aged like milk. Who could have seen this coming?
Not trying to be a negative Nancy, but there isn’t much optimism around the Canucks’ crease right now, unless you believe Nikita Tolopilo is a future Vezina Trophy winner after six career NHL games. To make matters worse, Arturs Silovs has had a better start to the season than Lankinen, so it feels like they traded the wrong goalie.
Unless scientists can come up with some kind of serum to keep Demko healthy, I don’t know how the Canucks handle their goalie situation moving forward, especially with both of them having full no-movement clauses for the next few years. Maybe, just maybe, they can find a way to get a return for Demko at the deadline… Hey Edmonton, I heard you’re still looking for a goalie. Interested in a Vezina-caliber goaltender to help take you to the promised land?