The Vancouver Canucks hope to have Thatcher Demko back before Christmas, co-president of hockey operations Henrik Sedin said Monday, though the club says it is not setting a firm timeline after the goalie’s hip surgery in January.
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Sedin told the “Halford and Brough” show that Demko “won't be ready early on,” but said the organization’s goal is to have him back before Christmas. He added there is “no timeline for that,” said Demko is “taking steps every day,” and said the team wants him “100 percent” when he returns.
Demko, 30, has been limited by lower-body injuries over the past two seasons. In 2023-24, he was a Vezina Trophy finalist but missed the end of the season and all but one game of the Stanley Cup Playoffs because of knee injuries.
Last season, Demko played 20 games and went 8-10-1 with a 2.90 goals-against average, a .897 save percentage and one shutout before his final start on Jan. 10 and subsequent hip surgery.
After last season, Demko called the surgery “drastic” and said it was needed to address a deeper issue. He said that over the previous two years he had been playing with “zero degrees of internal rotation in my hip,” adding that “everything above and below” was affected: “the back, it’s the knees, the groin -- everything is trying to do too much work.”
General manager Ryan Johnson said Friday the club is taking the “correct steps” “once and one time only,” and said “the lack of timeline” is deliberate. He said setting timelines can create pressure on both the player and the recovery plan, and that the team is proceeding “step by step, doing it the right way where everybody's comfortable with it.”
Vancouver added goaltending depth Friday by claiming Leevi Merilainen off waivers from the Ottawa Senators. Merilainen, 24, is expected to join the Canucks for practice on Monday.
Merilainen went 8-10-1 with a 3.51 goals-against average and an .860 save percentage in 20 games, including 19 starts, with Ottawa last season. Over 34 NHL games, including 32 starts, he has a 16-14-3 record, a 3.00 GAA, an .885 save percentage and three shutouts.
Kevin Lankinen is expected to start Vancouver’s season opener against the Edmonton Oilers on Tuesday at 10 p.m. ET on SN. The Canucks then host Edmonton on Thursday before playing the Calgary Flames on Saturday and the Vegas Golden Knights on Sunday.
Demko has spent his entire NHL career with Vancouver. In 262 games, including 256 starts, he is 134-99-21 with a 2.81 goals-against average, a .909 save percentage and 10 shutouts.
Sedin said the priority remains a healthy return rather than a rushed one, with Lankinen and Merilainen handling the workload to start the season.
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