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The Canucks have every reason to give Leevi Meriläinen a run of starts

Photo credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images

By Lachlan Irvine

Oct 9, 2026, 17:05 EDTUpdated: Oct 9, 2026, 17:26 EDT

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We’re only two weeks into the 2026-27 Vancouver Canucks season, and a goaltending controversy is already brewing on the West Coast.

It’s been a tough start to the campaign for Kevin Lankinen. Through four games, Lankinen has allowed 22 goals and posted an ugly .796 save percentage. According to Natural Stat Trick’s Goals Saved Above Expected metric, Lankinen sits last in the NHL in all situations at -10.6.

His last start against the Carolina Hurricanes snowballed fast. It took less than 10 minutes into the first period for the Hurricanes to run the score up to 3-0, and in the second, the Canes targeted Lankinen’s glove side for another three. Lankinen would give way to backup Leevi Meriläinen for the third in an eventual 7-2 Canucks loss.

Now it wouldn’t be fair to ignore that some of that stat line is happenstance. Lankinen’s first four matchups have included two games against the offensive powerhouse Edmonton Oilers, the Western champion Vegas Golden Knights and the Stanley Cup-winning Hurricanes. Needless to say, Lankinen has yet to get an “easy night”.

With the uphill battle the Canucks are going to be facing over the course of this season, they’re going to require goaltending that can go above and beyond to get wins over the finish line. Thatcher Demko is expected to be out until December due to injury, so that torch has fallen to Lankinen, and so far, he’s really struggled holding the Canucks in games.

That leaves the door open for Leevi Meriläinen. The recent waiver-wire pickup from the Ottawa Senators has already started once in a 4-1 win over the Calgary Flames and made two relief appearances for Lankinen. So far, Meriläinen has performed admirably, posting a .941 save percentage and only allowing three goals. Meriläinen’s 2.60 GSAA is good enough for 11th in the league, putting him in the company of Jacob Markstrom, Logan Thompson and Joel Hofer. Even in relief on Thursday, Meriläinen made his impact felt with a big save on Eric Robinson.

Daniel Wagner

@passittobulis

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Sure, the Hurricanes scored again, but how about this save by Leevi Meriläinen? Let's not talk about why Buium and Willander are both chasing the puck below the goal line, that is neither here nor there. #Canucks

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1:16 AM · Oct 9, 2026

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The Canucks’ next games this weekend against the New Jersey Devils and New York Rangers are back-to-backs and will require a start from both goalies. But Lankinen’s struggles have opened the door for Meriläinen to get a run of games over the next few weeks, starting with three games in five days on the road against the New York Islanders, Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning. That provides an opportunity to see what the Finnish netminder can do with regular starts over a tough Eastern road trip.

Even though he’s new to the Canucks’ system, there’s very little risk in giving Meriläinen the majority of their next handful of starts. Enough solid performances through the rest of the road trip could, at the very least, help stabilize the Canucks’ defence and lower their league-leading goals against of 25.

The Canucks don’t need Meriläinen to steal any wins at this point; they just need a goaltender who can provide more consistent play in net and keep his teammates in the mix. And right now, the path of least resistance for head coach Manny Malhotra is handing the ball over to the new goaltender and letting him run with it.

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