Vancouver Canucks starting goaltender confirmed as new lineup takes shape ahead of Bruins matchup

As the calendar flipped to 2026, the Vancouver Canucks began preparations for their first of 16 games in the month of January and started things off last night as they hosted the Seattle Kraken at Rogers Arena.

Vancouver was able to erase a 3-1 deficit to force overtime thanks to goals from Jake DeBrusk and Linus Karlsson, who signed a two-year extension with the club on Friday, but ultimately, Adam Foote's group fell in the shootout as Kraken netminder Joey Daccord stopped all three shots he faced.

The Canucks don't have any time to dwell on last night's loss as the National Hockey League's condensed schedule this season sees them facing yet another back-to-back as the Boston Bruins come to town on Saturday for their only trip to the Lower Mainland during the 2025-26 campaign.

While changes could always be made at last minute following warmup, it appears that the Vancouver Canucks will be sticking with the same lineup tonight against the Boston Bruins, according to Cam Stirling of Inside The Rink.

Linus Karlsson, fresh off that newly signed contract extension, will remain on the top line with Elias Pettersson and Jake DeBrusk, a trio that contributed two of Vancouver's three goals on Friday night.

Max Sasson is expected to remain in the second line center role amid amid an injury to Austrian forward Marco Rossi, with Evander Kane and Brock Boeser set to be his wingers once again.

Drew O'Connor, David Kampf and the team's leading goal scorer, Kiefer Sherwood, will make up the Canucks' third line this evening, while Liam Ohgren is set to stay on the fourth line for another game and will skate alongside Aatu Raty and Nils Hoglander.

As mentioned, the defensive pairings are also expected to remain similar to last night's, although a change or two could be in order after Elias Pettersson was the odd man out on Friday night.

The only confirmed change for tonight's game against Boston is between the pipes as Kevin Lankinen is set to make his 19th start of the season for the Vancouver Canucks, one day after being named to Finland's roster for the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Puck drop for tonight's game between the Vancouver Canucks and Boston Bruins is set for 7 p.m. PT and can be viewed nationally on CBC and Sportsnet as part of Hockey Night in Canada.