While the Vancouver Canucks were celebrating Conor Garland’s breakaway goal in the offensive zone, their goaltender Thatcher Demko was heading out of the defensive zone, to the bench, and down the tunnel to the locker room with an apparent injury.
The Canucks goaltender exited nearly halfway through the second period. We’re still waiting on details of when or what happened to Demko, but this was his last sequence before he exited the game:
Demko made his return to the Canucks lineup in a match against the St. Louis Blues after missing the first 26 games of the season. He was absent as he was still recovering from his Popliteus injury to his knee that he suffered in Game 1 of last year’s Stanley Cup playoffs opening round against the Nashville Predators.
This was just Demko’s seventh start of the season. He stopped 11 of the 12 shots he faced before departing in the second period. On the season, he held a 2-1-3 record, with a 3.42 goals against average (GAA) and a .879 save percentage (S%).
Here is another look at where Demko could have sustained an injury:
Kevin Lankinen came in relief for the Demko and was tested early:
Lankinen has done an admirable job of stepping in for Demko this season. He holds a 14-6-4 record with a 2.59 GAA and a .908 S% with three shutouts. He’s stopped all seven shots he faced in the second half of the second period and will finish the game for the Canucks as the team announced Demko will not return:
We’ll have to wait until post-game for an update from Rick Tocchet on the Canucks goaltender. The Canucks play again tomorrow against the Predators and will need to summon Arturs Silovs from AHL Abbotsford if Demko can’t go for that game. Silovs will have a lengthy travel day ahead of him as the Abbotsford Canucks are currently on a road trip in Laval, Quebec on a road trip.