Obviously there's no way of knowing if Lankinen can maintain the pace he's currently on through an extended schedule. After all, in his four year career, he's been strictly a backup. In fact 37 games is the most he's ever played in an NHL season, and that was in his first year in Chicago.
But one skill he possesses in spades is puck-handling. It's uncanny how he can go behind his own net and stop those rim-arounds.
It's impossible to overstate how critical it is to your d-men to have a quality puck-handling goalie back there. It's almost like having an extra d-man out on every shift. For years now the Canucks blueline has been seriously vulnerable to a hard forecheck.
But Lankinen is not just stopping the puck right now.....his puck-handling is making a huge difference.
But one skill he possesses in spades is puck-handling. It's uncanny how he can go behind his own net and stop those rim-arounds.
It's impossible to overstate how critical it is to your d-men to have a quality puck-handling goalie back there. It's almost like having an extra d-man out on every shift. For years now the Canucks blueline has been seriously vulnerable to a hard forecheck.
But Lankinen is not just stopping the puck right now.....his puck-handling is making a huge difference.
