The Vancouver Canucks aren’t taking home any hardware this season. Not in the literal sense. Their prospects? Yeah, they have that covered. Thatcher Demko, 20, was awarded the Hockey East Player of the Year award. Demko shares the honour with UMass-Lowell goaltender, Kevin Boyle.

A goaltender hasn’t taken this award home since Brad Thiessen backstopped Northeastern to a third-place finish in Hockey East in the 2008-09 season. Mike Ayers and Ben Eaves were the last to share the award, splitting the honour in 2002-03. 

It’s rare that a goaltender takes home this award, but Demko’s sterling numbers are such that it’s not surprising his was the season that bucked convention. Demko, who was selected by the Canucks in the second-round of the 2014 NHL Entry Draft, has stewarded the Boston College Eagles with a 25-6-4 record, with a .938 Sv%. Boyle, the co-victor, led the River Hawks with a 22-8-5 record with a 0.934 Sv%.

Like any goaltender, Demko remains a relative longshot to break through at the next level. Goaltending remains a difficult area to project, even with the advances made in draft and goaltender analytics. So while I would caution against preempting the ‘Demko for Starter’ campaign in 2017-18, that’s much more an indictment of the position Demko plays than the skillset he brings to the table.

Demko has enjoyed a highly successful season, complete with broken records (Demko set the BC record for shutouts, beating Cory Schneider’s eight with ten of his own) and team success to boot. The Eagles are set to lock horns with Northeastern tomorrow in the Hockey East Conference Finals. Demko will face Canucks fifth-round selection, Adam Gaudette, for the privilege of playing in the Finals matchup on Saturday.

As Demko’s Eagles are top-ten ranked team nationally, they will participate in the NCAA Regionals next weekend with the hope of advancing to the Frozen Four tournament. Canucks fans would be wise to follow this, if for no other reason than the implication that Demko’s advancement might determine the Canucks ability to sign him to an entry-level contract.

It’s not uncommon that NHL teams will dangle the NHL games carrot in front of college prospects as even the briefest of stays can burn a year of their entry-level contract – moving the prospect closer to restricted free agency. If Demko and the Eagles advance to the Frozen Four, that would preclude the Canucks from offering NHL action.