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Yahoo
7 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Vancouver Canucks 2024-25 Report Card: Kevin Lankinen
Welcome to this edition of THN's Vancouver Canucks 2024-25 Report Card. This recurring 2025 off-season series features a deep dive into how each Canucks player performed last year. Today's article will focus on goaltender Kevin Lankinen, who finished the season with 25 wins in 51 games.
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Canucks schedule: No mulligans allowed after horrible home-ice record last season
It's just one game, right? It's not the end of the world if you win or lose your NHL home-opener because there is always ample time to right the wrongs. However, if you're the Vancouver Canucks with lingering memories of blowing two big leads in a 6-5 overtime loss to the Calgary Flames at Rogers Arena to commence a troubled 2024-2025 campaign, their Oct. 9 curtain-raiser in Vancouver this season against those same Flames should be treated like a playoff game. It has come to this in an alienated market where getting back to the playoffs is like conquering the Grouse Grind with consistent and strong strides. It's exhausting but exhilarating if you ascend without losing balance or taking a tumble. The Canucks stumbled out of the gate last season at Rogers Arena. They were 3-5-3 after 11 dates, won two straight on just two occasions, and finished at 17-16-8. Put it this way. Minnesota and claimed the final two wildcard playoff berths because of 23-13-5 and 24-14-3 home marks respectively. Seven more points would have got the Canucks to the postseason. And whether that came from overtime points with a league-worst 10-14 mark, or being harder to play against at home, it brought a paltry 23rd-ranked offence into focus. It overshadowed a third-rated penalty kill and strong 21-14-6 road record. Of course, a new season brings new hope. That's what the faithful cling to and pay for. A healthy Thatcher Demko and Kevin Lankinen should form a formidable goaltending tandem. The back end is a lot better than a year ago when it bled odd-man rushes and turnovers. The Canucks now defend better down low and spend less time in their own zone. And with a healthy captain Quinn Hughes as the get-out-of-jail-free card, and packing an added offensive arsenal, there's reason for hope. The biggest intrigue comes up front in the top-six mix potential. The trade play for left winger Evander Kane, who turns 34 on Aug. 2, could pay dividends because he's healthy, in a contract year, returning home, and motivated to extend his career. The Canucks took on the $5.12 million US remaining on his deal and gave up a fourth-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft to the Edmonton Oilers. Kane has potential to hit 30 goals for the third time in his career. Kane's arrival and Brock Boeser's pivot back from free agency sets the Canucks up for better balance and production in their top two lines. Boeser, 28, got a seven-year, $50.75-million extension to put his mind at ease, and an incentive to get this game back to 30 goals and potentially more. Jake DeBrusk is coming off a career 28-goal season, which included 14 on the power play to rank fifth overall, and the burning question is which left winger works best for struggling Elias Pettersson. Kane to drive play and open up space, or DeBrusk for big down-low presence? The Canucks still have a riddle in the middle after losing Pius Suter to free agency. The can't rely on Pettersson and Filip Chytil to carry the load, and need support via a trade, which could see a roster player or players depart, depending on the roster addition. MUST-SEE HOME GAMES: Oct. 25: Reigning Calder Trophy winner Lane Hutson and the vastly improved Montreal Canadiens make their only trip in a 4 p.m. clash. Oct. 28: J.T. Miller makes his return to Vancouver after being dealt to the New York Rangers in a multi-player deal Jan. 31. The fans might still chant his name. At his best, he was dynamo. A 7 p.m. tilt. Nov. 11: Jonathan Toews, 37, returns in a one-year deal with the Winnipeg Jets. The legendary Chicago Blackhawks centre has battled numerous ailments — including long-COVID effects — and hasn't played since April 13, 2023. It's a 7 p.m. start. Jan. 21: Ageless Alex Ovechkin, 39, is the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer with 897 career regular-season tallies with the Washington Capitals. It's a 7 p.m. contest. March 17: Two-time defending Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers make their lone trip to the West Coast to hone their game for a three-peat title quest in a big 7 p.m. tilt. NOTES OF NOTE: Crazy Eights: Vancouver has two eight-game home-stands. The first starts Jan.17 against Edmonton and concludes Jan. 31 against Toronto. The second runs March 2 against Dallas through to March 26 against Los Angeles. Backstreet's Back (to back): The Canucks have 14 sets of back-to-back games, including three in each of November, December, and January, as well as two in October and April, and one in March. Hitting the Road: The team's longest road trip is six games, spanning Jan. 6-15. The Canucks make stops in Buffalo, Detroit, Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa and Columbus. Weekly Planner: The breakdown by day of the week is as follows: Monday – 12 Tuesday – 13 Wednesday – 7 Thursday – 15 Friday – 8 Saturday – 19 Sunday – 8 Olympic Return: The schedule pauses Feb. 6-24 as players travel to Italy for 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo. Quinn Hughes (USA) and Teddy Blueger (Latvia) have been named to preliminary rosters. bkuzma@ Your (Printable) Vancouver Canucks 2025-26 schedule Canucks: Towering Nikita Tolopilo doesn't need motivation, but now he has some to spare
New York Times
03-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Winners and losers of the offseason NHL goalie carousel
This was far from the most exciting free-agent class in NHL history, especially when it came to the goaltenders. Most of netminders that hit the open market on Tuesday projected as backups at best, and the top option, Jake Allen, re-signed with New Jersey before the clock struck noon Eastern, further deflating what was already an uninspiring class. Advertisement There was still quite a bit of movement in the crease on the first day of free agency. In total, 16 goalies signed contracts on July 1, worth a combined $61.75 million, and three goalies were traded over the last week. Some teams made sensible moves to improve their depth in net. Some paved the way for younger goalies within the organization to take a leap in 2025-26. Others idly watched goalies fly off the board without improving their own status. We are here to declare the winners and losers of the offseason goaltending carousel, starting with the victors: The first goalie signing of the day on Tuesday was by far the biggest, as Vancouver locked up Demko with a three-year extension worth $8.5 million per year. There was speculation the Canucks could look to trade their 2023 Vezina Trophy runner-up after an injury-riddled season and after signing backup Kevin Lankinen to a five-year, $22.5 million contract in February. They put that notion to bed by signing Demko to an extension that will make him the third-highest-paid goalie in the NHL when it begins in 2026-27. Demko played only 23 games last season, dealing with a scary knee tear and multiple other injuries. In the limited action he did see, he never found his rhythm or looked like the elite goalie we've seen in the past. As a result of that lengthy injury history, the Canucks clearly preferred to sign Demko to more money with less term. The $8.5 million cap hit is the same as two-time defending Vezina winner Connor Hellebuyck, which is a lot considering Demko has made 50 starts in a season only twice in his career. This signing carries risk for Vancouver, which will have $13 million allocated to goaltending when the extension kicks in, but it will be worth it if Demko returns to form. His rare combination of size, athleticism and edge work are nearly impossible to find. Advertisement Demko is the clear winner here, though. He got paid like an elite goalie in spite of a forgettable 2024-25 season. As mentioned, the Devils took the top unrestricted free agent goalie off the board before the market even opened by signing Allen to a five-year extension worth $1.8 million per year. The term on that contract is sure to raise some eyebrows, considering Allen will be 40 when it expires. As the top goalie of this class, he easily could've commanded more than $1.8 million on the open market, but he likes it in New Jersey and got paid while helping general manager Tom Fitzgerald massage the cap hit by spreading it across five years. It looks like a brilliant move by Fitzgerald to keep one of the better goalie tandems in the league intact. Allen is an elite backup, and while starting 35-year-old Jacob Markstrom, who hasn't reached 50 starts in either of the last two seasons, keeping Allen was a huge win for the Devils. Not only is Allen a great insurance policy if Markstrom misses time, he played so well (ranking 14th with 19.07 goals saved above expected in only 29 starts) that New Jersey can play him with confidence and keep Markstrom's workload down. One of the under-the-radar moves in the crease this week was Columbus' trade that sent Daniil Tarasov to Florida for a fifth-round pick. Tarasov was a third-round pick in 2017, but he has struggled in the NHL with a .898 save percentage and minus-5.24 GSAx in three seasons with the Blue Jackets. I like this move for Tarasov, who gets a fresh start behind a strong Panthers team and the chance to learn from Sergei Bobrovsky. Oddly enough, Bobrovsky grew up watching Tarasov's father, Vadim Tarasov, who goaltended for Bobrovsky's hometown KHL team in Novokuznetsk, Russia. Now he has the opportunity to mentor his son. Advertisement The real winner in this trade is Greaves, who has looked impressive in limited opportunities for Columbus but has been stuck behind Tarasov on the depth chart. Undrafted and undersized, Greaves has quickly risen up the ranks of talented young goalies ready to make their mark in the NHL. He has been dominant for the Cleveland Monsters in the AHL over the last two seasons, and put up a .939 save percentage and two shutouts in only 11 starts for the Blue Jackets last season. Greaves reads the game well and has incredibly quick feet and great lateral movement. With a clear path to being a full-time NHL goalie in 2025-26, he is one of the early favorites to have a breakout season. It wouldn't be that surprising if he usurped Elvis Merzlikins as Columbus' starter by the end of it. After back-to-back losses in the Stanley Cup Final, with goaltending being the clear and obvious need, the Oilers shocked many by standing pat in the crease – at least for now. Edmonton still has Stuart Skinner and Calvin Pickard under contract for one more season, and GM Stan Bowman chose not to add a goalie on Tuesday. In Bowman's defense, it's not as if there was a bounty of options available to upgrade his goaltending. Still, he passed on John Gibson, who Anaheim traded to Detroit for Petr Mrazek and two draft picks. He also passed on signing one of the veteran backups on the open market. There are still a few options out there. Ilya Samsonov, who started 29 games as the Golden Knights' backup this past season, and Alexandar Georgiev, who had a disastrous 2024-25 season with Colorado and San Jose, both remain unsigned. They've both been starters on playoff teams in the past, but neither is an obvious upgrade over what Edmonton already has. Unless the Oilers can find an unexpected trade partner – such as prying Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen away from Buffalo – they'll enter the season with question marks in the crease yet again. Detroit Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman upgraded his starting goalie with the aforementioned trade to bring in Gibson. For a Detroit team fighting to break out of the rebuild stage and back into the playoffs, the potential of Gibson is enticing. Advertisement The acquisition also creates another hurdle for 2021 first-round pick Sebastian Cossa to break through with the NHL club. Taken with the No. 15 overall selection, Cossa is the third-highest drafted goalie in the last 15 years, but with Gibson and Cam Talbot in Detroit, it appears he's destined for a fourth season in the minor leagues. It's not the end of the world for a 22-year-old goalie to get more seasoning, but Cossa has already played more games in the minors than every first-round pick since Jack Campbell in 2010. In speaking with a few goalie coaches around the league, 100 games in the minors is considered a good amount for a young goalie prospect. Considering Cossa's pedigree one would expect fewer for him, especially when you add in the fact that Detroit hasn't exactly been settled in net. Trey Augustine, whom Detroit drafted in the second round in 2023, has looked great at Michigan State and with Team USA at the World Junior Championship. He'll soon be nipping at Cossa's heels. The big, athletic Hamilton, Ont. native needs an impressive camp, and an even more impressive season with the Grand Rapids Griffins, to maintain his place as Detroit's goalie of the future. The Flyers didn't just have the worst goaltending in the NHL in 2024-25 — they were in their own universe entirely. Philadelphia had three of the bottom five goalies in the league in GSAx, and their combined minus-45.21 goals saved above expected were 30 below the the next-worst team. Similarly to Edmonton, the permanent answer to the Flyers' goaltending troubles wasn't available in this free agency period, but it feels like Philadelphia could've done better than signing Dan Vladar to a two-year contract worth $3.35 million per year. Vladar has spent the last four seasons as Calgary's backup. He's a big, rangy goalie but he has also produced a save percentage below the league average and negative GSAx in all five of his NHL seasons. In the midst of a rebuild, the Flyers aren't desperate to find their franchise goalie at this moment, but better goaltending could accelerate the rebuild process. Philadelphia allowed the ninth-fewest shots and the fourth-fewest high-danger chances in the NHL last year but was completely undone by subpar goaltending. Advertisement Perhaps the last two 'losers' on this list could help each other. If Detroit has any doubts that Cossa is its goalie of the future, the Flyers would be wise to inquire. There's no indication Yzerman has any interest in dealing Cossa, but with Augustine developing the way he has been, it could be worth a call. (Photo of Thatcher Demko: Jerome Miron / Imagn Images)
New York Times
01-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
Canucks agree to extensions with Thatcher Demko and Conor Garland
The Vancouver Canucks announced contract extensions for goaltender Thatcher Demko and forward Conor Garland on Tuesday. Demko's deal is for three years at a $8.5 million cap hit, while Garland was extended for six years and a $6 million annual average value. Both contracts will begin in the 2026-27 season. Advertisement Demko is coming off an injury-plagued campaign where he was limited to 23 games. In 2023-24, he was a Vezina finalist with a 35-14-2 record, .918 save percentage and 2.45 goals-against average as Vancouver won the Pacific Division. In February, the Canucks signed goaltender Kevin Lankinen to a five-year deal for $4.5 million per year, so they have now locked up two veteran goalies for the foreseable future. Garland has been a consistent offensive driver for Vancouver since arriving in a trade in 2021. Across four seasons, he has posted 195 points in 321 games. This story will be updated.
National Post
30-06-2025
- Sport
- National Post
Canucks: It's not money, term is big key in Thatcher Demko contract extension
Article content It's not about money in an imminent Thatcher Demko contract extension. It's about term. Article content When healthy, the Vancouver Canucks starting goaltender has put up monster numbers and was a Vezina Trophy finalist in 2024. The rub in all that are career hip, groin and knee ailments that have hampered consistency and durability. That's not lost on management. Article content There has to be a sweet spot for all parties to be comfortable with a deal that's of market value, but doesn't carry a lengthy term. Consider it insurance for the Canucks and reality for Demko, 29, to work in a tandem with Kevin Lankinen, 30, and get the club back to the post-season. Article content Demko has one year remaining on his current deal at US$5 million and is eligible for an extension Tuesday. Article content There was always a contract comparable sitting on a tee. Demko's camp could take one look at what Linus Ullmark has accomplished, and what he agreed to in a new contract, and take a swing. Article content Ullmark, 31, had an expiring salary cap hit of $5 million this NHL season and then his four-year, $33-million extension kicks in with the Ottawa Senators. It carries an $8.25 million cap hit and that could be a win-win for Demko and the Canucks. Article content Demko never wanted a change of scenery and has always vowed that the best is yet to come. The Canucks are banking on that because they could have waited to see how he starts next season before making a considerable commitment. And comparable numbers should add up to a fair deal. Article content Article content Ullmark has played 297 career regular-season games with a 2.54 goals-against average, .917 saves percentage and 13 shutouts. He won the Vezina Trophy in 2023. Demko has logged 242 games with a 2.80 GAA., .910 percentage and nine shutouts. He was limited to 23 games this season with injuries and posted a 10-8-3 record, 2.90 GAA. and .889 saves percentage and one shutout. Article content Article content The Canucks could have also considered a trade because Demko didn't have movement protections, but that's a very slippery slope, even with the injury concerns. Article content Article content Lankinen and Arturs Silovs, 24, might not have measured up as a reliable duo. Even with Silovs backstopping the Abbotsford Canucks to their first Calder Cup championship and named AHL playoffs most valuable player. He's not waiver exempt next season and would be claimed off waivers, so he now becomes tempting trade bait for teams needing help in goal, namely Edmonton and Philadelphia.
