BREAKING: Canucks' Thatcher Demko Leaves Game Against Seattle

A 2-1 Conor Garland goal celebration was short-lived for Vancouver Canucks fans, as immediately after Vancouver took the lead in their matchup against the Seattle Kraken, goaltender Thatcher Demko left for the Canucks' dressing room. Prior to his departure, he made 11 saves on the night and only let in one goal.

Demko has missed long stretches of time due to injury, as prior to his season debut on December 10, his last game was game 1 of round one of the 2024 NHL playoffs, which occurred on April 21. Before that, he had spent the last month of the 2023-24 regular season on the IR.

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Kevin Lankinen came into the game in relief for Demko, making seven saves on seven shots against before the second period came to an end. It's expected that, if Demko is out long-term, that Artūrs Šilovs will be called up from the Abbotsford Canucks to back Lankinen up through the team's upcoming road trip.

Since coming back from his knee injury, Demko is 2-1-3 on the season with a .879 SV% and 3.43 GAA. Despite the numbers, he has looked great behind a team with a lacklustre defensive core.

Demko's departure from the game marks the fourth key Canuck currently out of the lineup, as captain Quinn Hughes, Elias Pettersson, and Filip Hronek are all also out of the lineup.