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Pushing Limits - Vancouver Canucks Head Coach Rick Tocchet Confirms Starting Goalie Against Utah Hockey Club
Photo credit: Canucks Daily
As the Vancouver Canucks get ready to face-off against the Utah Hockey Club to kick off their short 2 game road trip, head coach Rick Tocchet has announced who he will be starting in net this evening.
After Suffering a devastating knee injury that has kept him on the sidelines with no end in sight, Thatcher Demko had been working endlessly to get back to his Vezina-caliber form.
Demko missed the first two months of the season recovering from a knee injury he suffered in Game 1 of the first round of the playoffs against the Nashville Predators. The 29-year-old had a career-high 35 wins, five shutouts, 2.45 goals-against average, and .918 save percentage in 51 games in 2023-24. - TSN
His knee seems to be fully back to 100% as Demko has taken on a larger workload with Kevin Lankinen out with the Flu.
Vancouver Canucks announce Thatcher Demko as starting goalie for matchup with the Utah Hockey Club
As the Canucks make their inaugural trip to visit Utah, head coach Rick Tocchet spoke to the media after practice to confirm that Thatcher Demko will be making his 3rd consecutive start of the season.
This has come as a bit of surprise to many as Kevin Lankinen has fully recovered from his illness. Tocchet disclosed that even though Lankinen is ready, he wants to give him an extra games rest.
Tocchet confirms that Demko is starting for Vancouver today.
Says Lankinen probably could have played tonight but he'll give him an extra day to get over the flu.
Says Lankinen probably could have played tonight but he'll give him an extra day to get over the flu.
Lankinen is fully expected to start against the Vegas Golden Knights tomorrow on the Canucks back to back.
Nonetheless, there are concerns surrounding Demko, not about his play, but his knee. Demko spent a long time out, with potentially of never returning, and it feels like the Canucks could be pushing it a little too much this soon.
The last thing anyone wants is to see Demko hurt again, and by starting him 3 games in a row, is concerning.
Previously on Vancouver Hockey Daily
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 18 | 426 ANSWERS Pushing Limits - Vancouver Canucks Head Coach Rick Tocchet Confirms Starting Goalie Against Utah Hockey Club Do you think the Vancouver Canucks are pushing Thatcher Demko too much? | ||
| Yes | 131 | 30.8 % |
| No | 295 | 69.2 % |
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