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The Stanchies: Kevin Lankinen remains a shootout savant as Canucks topple the Kraken 3-2
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Photo credit: © Stephen Brashear-Imagn Images
The Stanchion
Dec 30, 2025, 03:35 ESTUpdated: Dec 30, 2025, 03:36 EST
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Look, I don’t think the Canucks are making the playoffs, but if the league decided to stop playing 60 minutes of hockey and award standings points only based on shootouts? I think they might have a shot.
I don’t know how to explain Dominik Hasek Kevin Lankinen’s perfection in shootouts, but I am not here to question it, either. In a season in which we have so little to enjoy, I will take weird phenomena like this and just embrace it. The tank is still the ultimate goal here, but if you can’t enjoy Kevin turning into a literal brick wall the second overtime ends in a hockey game, then what are we even doing here.
And to Lankinen’s credit, the Canucks 3-2 win over the Seattle Kraken was much more than just the shootout heroics. We all know that the Canucks netminder has struggled this season, but on this night, he stopped 37 of 39 shots (many of the high danger variety) as he backstopped his team with a tidy .949 save percentage, finishing with a 2.11 goals saved above expected.
In fact, once overtime ended and we all joked the game was already over, but Seattle just didn’t realize it yet, we all kind of looked around and realized we weren’t joking all that much. We’re at the point where if Lankinen does let in a shootout goal, we would all be severely disappointed in him. He has set the bar so high and must continue to live up to this impossible standard, otherwise we’ll have nothing left in this city. This is our identity now. You get to a shootout in Vancouver, you lose, end of story. It’s all we have, don’t take this from us Kevin.
Of course, there were a few other storylines woven in throughout this game. The growing pains without Quinn Hughes continue, as zone exits and entries appear to be a foreign currency that the Canucks currently don’t have on hand, as the team struggled heavily on that front. Conor Garland continues to be the heartbeat of this team, as a spirited fight from the diminutive winger seemed to give the Canucks a spark they sorely needed in the first period.
And yes, Jake DeBrusk was a healthy scratch, as “wingers who sort of exist I guess?” continues to be the tag line for a team in dire need of offensive production.
Look, I like Jake DeBrusk as a player. Obviously we all know he is a very streaky player, as we all fondly remember November Jake. October Jake kind of sucked, though. December Jake hasn’t paid his rent yet and we’re all a bit frustrated with him not emptying the dishwasher. Which means January Jake is going to be amazing, right? The math is right there laid out in front of you, binary is no joke.
But honestly, between you and me, they could have scratched any player not named Fil Hronek and I wouldn’t have batted an eye. Maybe Elias Pettersson too, purely because I wouldn’t have the heart to go online to see the discourse surrounding it, but anyone else? Yeah, sure. Scratch away. I can’t imagine taking anyone out of this lineup would cause a noticeable dent in anything. Possibly Conor Garland as well, that one might be the one guy I’d keep around. Other than that, what’s the worst that’s going to happen? Nobody is lighting the world on fire for this team. At best it jumpstarts a player and gets them going. At worst they get into a fight with another player for reasons, it festers for around a couple of seasons, the general manager locks them in a room and tells them to deal with it, until it eventually implodes and takes down the entire team in a couple of seasons.
Wait.
The point is, when Filip Hronek, Drew O’Connor, and Linus Karlsson are leading the charge for five-on-five offence, you have an awful lot of leeway in lineup choices. It’s hard to tell the coach with a straight face that he can’t take you out of the lineup when you’re struggling to keep pace with Aatu Räty.
And look at that, the Canucks won the game without Jake. I wouldn’t say they played tremendously better without him, but I don’t think anyone missed him on the ice either. Which is the sort of damning indictment that showcases why it’s Tank Season and wins are to be shunned when you’re watching Gavin McKenna do a hard reboot into a first overall pick during the World Junior tournament.
So, much like the city of Langley, the Canucks result was better than you expected…but it’s still ultimately the city of Langley; You wouldn’t want to live there long term and you hope you can get out soon.
Team tank rolls on tomorrow against the Flyers, but for now, let’s dive into the game.
Best putting your nuts on the table
Brazil nuts that is, because who likes them? What better way to let a team know you are in a heated rivalry than by showing them ugly nuts?
And Kevin Lankinen? He was locked in. This was prime October/November 2024 Kevin Lankinen on Monday night, the kind of Kevin you brag to your parents about.
Kaapo Kakko wants to score on Lankinen? Sorry, gonna need better than that:
This was not a pretty game by any stretch of the imagination. When two basement-dwelling teams face off against each other, it’s usually a solid display of uninspired hockey. The Canucks’ young defence had some struggles as well, as Zeev Buium showcases in that first clip.
Which is why sometimes you just have to enjoy what you can, you know? I imagine the players don’t enjoy losing (just taking a wild guess here), and I don’t think “tanking for Gavin!” is a rallying cry that fills them with too much inspiration. So yeah, sometimes when a player is locked in like Kevin was, I just go along for the ride. What else are you gonna do, you know?
And as we’ve said in the past, it’s not an effort issue with this team, it’s the skill gap issue. It doesn’t make the games any easier to watch aesthetically, but it sure feels better than watching a skilled team not trying in a losing season.
So let’s get back on track here and answer the important questions. Did Tyler Myers take a penalty? You’re damn right he did!
Here is Ben Meyers committing some Meyers on Myers crime, as he walks right around the Chaos Giraffe, forcing Lankinen to make a stop in the slot:
Amusingly enough, the veteran defenceman on the team in Myers and Marcus Pettersson struggled the most in this game, as up next we have MP3 getting absolutely dog walked by Jordan Eberle shortly thereafter:
So leave it to Tom Willander to step up big and make a goal-saving block to show the veterans the “right way to play” a couple of shifts later:
As you can tell from the clips, it’s a bit of a greasy game you have on your hands. Resist the urge to wipe your lap, try and use wet wipes, but please don’t flush them down the toilet. I know you’ve done that in the past Chris, but stop it. Yes, I am talking to you.
Best get behind it
While Ray Ferraro tried to say he felt like this was one of Brock Boeser’s best games in recent memory, I wasn’t seeing it? He had another unflattering showing in my humble opinion, and his underlying stats put him at the bottom of the team. Last in expected goals at 5 on 5, last in Corsi, only one shot, yet had the most ice time of any forward. His line also had the most offensive zone starts as well, so it wasn’t like he was working from behind. Just wasn’t a banner night for Brock.
We’re at the point where, yeah, if they healthy scratched Boeser, it would be right in line with taking Jake out of the lineup. Throw Evander Kane into the mix as well while we’re at it. Why not.
Elias Pettersson, on the other hand, showed a little more oomph. He scored a goal, which we will see later, and he was once again making smart defensive decisions on the ice. It felt like he was visible for some good reasons at the very least.
His hockey IQ was on display on the penalty kill when he read a pass and intercepted it neatly to kill off an offensive zone entry from the Kraken:
And while I don’t think “falling to the ice and using my ribs to torpedo my opponent” was the gameplan here, you can at least see the effort he makes in every zone:
At the very least, Rachel Gunn might have learned some new moves watching that play.
I also had high hopes that EP40 grabbing the puck and shooting into traffic was a sign of things to come in the game:
He didn’t pass out of it, he didn’t hold onto the puck and softly smother the play in the corner until it died, crying and apologizing about how he was sorry this had to happen, he just grabbed the puck and ripped it.
Now, personally? I drop to my knees in Walmart any chance I get to scream at Elias to shoot the puck as much as possible, but sadly, he finished with only two shots on net. The good news is that he was third in shot attempts with six, but yeah. That 11.6 million dollar price tag means you’re not exactly going to be celebrating shot attempt production anytime soon. At the end of the day, Elias Pettersson needs to find his form and become that number one center he used to be. Which starts with getting shots on net, and not “shits on net” like I almost typed by accident.
Best hello old friend
Former Canucks first rounder Jared McCann showed off a heck of shot in his short time with the Canucks, and wouldn’t you know it, that continues to be the case now, as he worked a quick little give-and-go for a piss missile one-timer goal to make it 1-0 Seattle:
Fun fact: only three players drafted after McCann have scored more career points than him: David Pastrnak, Adrian Kempe, and Brayden Point.
Fun fact number two: Jacob Middleton was the last selection taken in the 2014 NHL draft, and has played 339 career games and currently plays with some person named Quinn Hughes.
Fun fact number three: While an impressive career despite being picked dead last, Jacob still has a way to go to catch Patric Hornqvist, who was picked last in the 2005 draft. He ended up scoring an incredible 543 points and played over 900 games in the NHL.
Fun fact number four: Jason Cugnet was a goalie drafted in 1995 in the 9th round by the Vancouver Canucks, and I only bring this up in the hopes someone who knows him sees this and sends him a picture of his name drop, wondering why we’re talking about him.
Anyways, that was a nice shot from Jared.
Best leading by example
Some gifs need sound, and this is one of them.
And while I think forced fights can be absolutely soul draining when done at the wrong time, there is a marked difference between Vinnie Desharnais sadly dropping his gloves and going through the motions on Brock Boeser’s behalf, versus Conor Garland owning up to a questionable elbow he threw earlier in the game on McCann and them settling it on the ice themselves.
It just all feels very Yellowstone, with men riding horses and spitting out tobacco as they air their grievances with fisticuffs, so they can all move on.
And that was a really good fight from two players who aren’t exactly UFC ready. Though I will say that at the end of the fight, Garland throws in a Shoryuken that catches Jared, before Corolla drags him down to the ice for the takedown. I think that one sealed the fight for Garland on the judges scorecards.
You can see the bench is pumped about the fight, Kiefer Sherwood in particular seems absolutely delighted by the turn of events, and it gave some juice to the Canucks. After looking pretty listless to start the game, the team had some energy after watching Garland throw ham bones. They in fact would almost immediately score right after the tussle when Liam Öhgren jumped up off of a faceoff and found Linus Karlsson alone in front of the net:
First off, that’s a very smart play from Liam. He continues to be a guy that intrigues me, he just has this good combination of a heavy game combined with a delightful tease of skill. It’s like he’s flirting with you from across the bar, he seems so approachable and part of you can’t help but wonder if there’s a 50 point player in him somewhere.
As for Linus Karlsson, he continues to impress me with his blue paint game. This is one of those reasons I don’t particularly miss Jake DeBrusk, because Karlsson has been doing the same net front game as Jake, except better, and for a much cheaper price tag. He just has no fear setting up in the crease and has shown an NHL finish when he gets the puck down low.
And moments later, the duo almost scored again, with Karlsson crashing the net and causing chaos before sending the puck back into the slot for Ohgren, who just couldn’t find a handle on it:
Again, this wasn’t particularly inspiring hockey, and not much will be when a team is heading down a tank-based path. But there are some silver linings to be found when you watch some of these young kids play.
Best keeping it on track
The Canucks would then give up a goal with under a minute left in the period when Zeev Buium went for an ill-timed line change, leaving Tyler Myers and D Elias Pettersson to try and figure out how to make it all work:
I haven’t been enamored with DP25’s game this year, I think his decision making has been exposed somewhat in the Adam Foote’s Whacky Inflatable World of Defensive Stuff We Try and Do system, and his gap control has been problematic at times.
When you add in Tyler Myers chaotic nature where I don’t even think he knows what he’s going to do on some plays, it can lead to moments where yeah, two dudes collide and give up a two on nothing rush that ends in a goal. The best I can make out is that Tyler Myers and Elias Pettersson both thought they were going to take the puck, then both decided that the other guy was going to take it, so they both backed off. It was synchronized mistakes at least, which is beautiful in its own way.
All I know is that when Elias Pettersson first jumped on the ice, everything was fine:
But half a second later, he was backing up and colliding with Tyler Myers:
In the blink of an eye, it had all fallen apart.
Best he sure does Reggie Ray
I don’t have a ton of exciting highlights, but what I do have are small little things that I picked out that made me half smile. That’s the bar here, folks, and will continue to be so for the rest of the season.
So let’s all enjoy Ohgren pursuing the puck, using his big body to win the puck battle, and having the skill and patience to maintain control of the puck and getting it back to the point for a shot attempt:
I am interested to see how he develops, what can I say. I like his skill set. It feels alluring, and if Judd Brackett liked it enough to draft it in the first round, I feel like that’s a good sign.
Best shooting your shot
The best offensive play of the game for Vancouver by far was their second goal, in which Zeev Buium and Tom Willander passed the puck down the ice to Evander Kane, who then found EP40 in the slot for the shot:
Things to note on this goal:
  • Elias Pettersson directing traffic. You can see him motioning to Willander for the pass to go to Evander Kane and not himself, which led to the efficient zone entry.
  • The Canucks defence is young, my friends. 20-23-year-olds are going to make their share of mistakes, but it’s also nice when they come together to combine on a goal like this. I don’t know what the future holds for this team, but it’s nice when you get a glimpse of something good out there.
  • EP40 shot the damn puck. No hesitation, he just did a little dingle dangle and unleashed his laser. That’s the Elias everyone needs to see more of.
Best protect your peepers
The penalty in question was when D Petey grabbed a visor and was then penalized for it:
I like the snarl to DP25’s game, I think he’s one of the top guys on the team who loses their shit anytime you breathe on a Canucks goalie. But with that comes face washes, and in this case, grabbing a visor and giving it a shake, which is a no-no in the NHL.
Luckily for Vancouver, they killed off the penalty, but the team continued to struggle to get the puck out of their zone, which led to more chances for Seattle.
A good example of this is when Willander and EP40 combined to both turn over the puck on the same play, leading to a scoring chance for the Kraken:
The same duo then combined to give up an odd-man rush when both players jumped up in the offensive zone, leaving Buium the task of trying to clean it up:
Wasn’t a slick night of hockey, you know?
Best Jake who?
The Canucks did have their moments in the second, most notably when Max Sasson did a little deke of his own, getting the best look of the period against Joey Daccord:
Please note Linus Karlsson being hard on the puck and creating enough of an issue to prevent Seattle from getting a stick on the loose puck. The guy grinds hard, and I dig it.
You also had Conor Garland being the resident tough guy of the time, this time making sure he’s out there finishing checks:
I don’t think the Canucks should assign a captain this season, but I will say I think Garland has stepped up into the leadership void in a huge way. He is constantly trying to drag his team back into the fight and although Lankinen will, and fully deserves, to get the spotlight, Conor was a big factor in this victory.
You also had Elias Pettersson setting up Marco Rossi for an offensive rush on the powerplay that ended in a missed shot, but it’s the thought that counts:
Nothing groundbreaking, nothing to write home about, but I needed to include these highlights so Quads doesn’t yell at me about missing any action.
Best relax, calm down
It’s not just the points with Quinn Hughes, it’s the lack of puck control.
Like, we all knew he was the best player on the team by far with the puck, we saw it night in and night out. And I know nobody took it for granted that he was a wizard with the puck. But there is still something very stark about watching life without Quinn Hughes because zone exits with possession are a mythical unicorn at this point, much less a zone entry with possession.
It was just a lot of the Canucks either flinging the puck up along the boards and getting cut off:
Or when they did get a zone exit, it was a pass to nobody, which would lead to a turnover and in this case, a scoring chance against:
And even when they’d win a puck battle, like Garland does here, the puck just wouldn’t get out of the zone, forcing Lankinen to make one of his best saves of the night:
It’s ugly hockey at its core, but a necessary one if the tank is to continue.
Best Kevin can’t hear you
Kevin Lankinen was the first star in this contest, as Seattle should have easily won this game. You want to take a shot from each faceoff circle? No problem, Kevin won’t sweat it:
To the Canucks credit, they also had some pretty timely shot blocks on the net. DP25 made a huge play on Kakko, deflecting the puck on what looked like a sure goal on an empty net in the third period:
And Tom Willander continues to impress with his speed, as he wins the Jeff Tambellini Back Check of the Night award against Seattle for this effort:
You’ll notice that rush from Seattle started because EP40 just threw the puck in the middle of the ice and hoped something good would happen. This is the height of the Canucks offence right now, hucking the puck into the middle and praying someone finds it.
And with the game coming to a close, Ryan Winterton found his way being Zeev Buium, only to be denied by Kevin:
Lankinen’s rebound control has been his biggest issue on the season, so that rebound to McCann wasn’t great, BUT full credit to Kevin for not sliding over too far, making sure he squared himself up to his net to make the next save.
Best this used to be fun
A Canucks overtime is not fun to watch.
Back in the day, when JT Miller didn’t openly hate Elias? Good times. Hughes, EP40, JT Miller, that was an enjoyable romp. You knew JT Miller would either score a breakaway goal or give up a breakaway goal. It had a sense of finality to it.
Nowadays it’s the Canucks grinding out the overtime to try and get it to the shootout, which is weird, and uncomfortable to watch, but when you have Lankinen in net, probably the right strategy?
The Canucks did find themselves in a bit of trouble in overtime when Sherwood and Kane both attempted to take a tripping penalty (Only Evander was give two minutes):
Best part of that? Sherwood unloading a slapshot into the empty net like the true troll he is. That should raise the asking price on him to three first rounders.
But you also had Fil Hronek continuing to be the only defensive player who shines in the Adam Foote system, as he continues to be the rock of this defence. Just makes smart decisions and blocks shots when you need him the most:
He has been the absolute stud on the backend for Vancouver this season.
And just for an extra dash of fun, here is Lankinen making one more save in overtime:
Your main takeaway from these clips should be the fact that Vancouver isn’t doing anything offensively in any of them. In fact, Sherwood scoring on the delayed penalty was the closest they got to scoring in overtime.
Best it was inevitable
First up let’s watch stupid Seattle players actually think they might score on Kevin Lankinen:
Patient and calm, there is no goalie better in the league at shootouts than Lankinen. We’re at the point where he’s like the Mariano Rivera of hockey, and if Thatcher Demko got a game to the shootout I would take a long hard moment to think about playing Lankinen’s entrance music and sending him into the game from the bullpen.
And at least this time it didn’t take a campaign from Brock Boeser to get Ohgren into the shootout, as he went third and sealed the game with a breakaway goal worthy of Alex Mogilny:
That is two straight goals where Ohgren is almost too cool for school for me? Look at his smug, knowing look after he scores, I absolutely love it. If the live broadcast had cut to that Jon Hamm meme right after his celebration, I would have happily accepted it.
Just a filthy goal from the newest Canuck, sending Vancouver into a game against the Flyers on Tuesday night against former friend turned quitter Rick Tocchet.
Will the tank continue? We shall see!
Best accurate statement
Best whoops
Oh, how did this get in here, sorry, trying to delete.

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