Pre-Game Talk: GM13 | Vancouver Canucks vs Edmonton Oilers | Sat. Nov 9th | 7:00pm PST | HNIC/SNP | Do It For Brocky

[arttk]

When the 'best case' is that he's a platoon goalie and we'll have to invest $9 million+ in the position to support him, that raises serious questions about whether it's a sensible thing to move forward with him.

If your choice is to go Demko-Lankinen for $9 million and lose, say, Boeser in the process or go Lankinen-Vladar (or whatever) for $6 million and retain Boeser, plus harvest trade assets for Demko ... that's a pretty easy call on the second option for me assuming we do see a larger sample of this level of play from Lankinen.

I think the league is transitioning to where the starter plays around 50ish games anyways. I don't think goalies can play 60ish games with the current technique and be fresh enough to play through 4 rounds of playoff hockey. With the cap going up, I think we will start to see team invest more in the backup and the backup will probably end up playing like 40games.

The value of keeping Demko is not going to be about him winning you a bunch of games in the regular season, it's going to be because he can win you games in the playoffs.

 

[Baby Pettersson]

All I can say in finding Lankinen has been a godsend. He's the only reason we have the luxury of even discussing the option of moving on from Demko.

 

[Ernie]

Lankinen is good but he's never shown himself to be THIS good over any decent stretch of time or he'd be a starter right now. Obviously this is a player that the rest of the league slept on but at the same time let's not get carried away with small sample sizes.

There's a formula for the Canucks winning the cup and it involves Demko being at the top of his game. It's a lot to ask to expect that of Lankenin.

 

[Vector]

There are tons of variables, but when even if the best-case outcome happens (Demko comes back, plays well, looks like a 40-game platoon starter moving forward) it becomes debatable if it's a good idea to move forward with him ... there are lots of questions to be asked.

Most of the other potential outcomes (Demko gets hurt again, Demko comes back and plays horribly) would probably make it crystal-clear that moving forward with him isn't a good idea.

Obviously we don't have anywhere near all the answers yet, but this is going to be a fascinating point of interest/discussion over the next 6 months and into next summer.

I think by TDL we should have a more clearer picture of our goaltending future. But I agree with @MS regarding those concerns.

Yeah, what Tact says. I don't disagree with anything, I just don't think there's a lot to go on at this very moment.

 

[Peen]

The more likely casualty to have the $9MM platoon next year would be Garland given he’s expiring and prob would want a big raise and term.

I don’t really have an issue with it. Imo is the better option than rushing that goaltending decision.

 

[Vector]

The more likely casualty to have the $9MM platoon next year would be Garland given he’s expiring and prob would want a big raise and term.

I don’t really have an issue with it. Imo is the better option than rushing that goaltending decision.

Garland and Demko have the same amount of term left; 2 more seasons each.

 

[MS]

Lankinen is good but he's never shown himself to be THIS good over any decent stretch of time or he'd be a starter right now. Obviously this is a player that the rest of the league slept on but at the same time let's not get carried away with small sample sizes.

There's a formula for the Canucks winning the cup and it involves Demko being at the top of his game. It's a lot to ask to expect that of Lankenin.

He spent the first 2 years of his career on terrible Chicago teams and then put up basically identical numbers to Jusse Saros on Nashville for the past two seasons, in years where Saros was 4th and 5th in Vezina voting. It seems like the whole league just totally missed that he was actually a really good goalie. Like, he was basically matching a near-Vezina level partner for the past two seasons.

Edit : and I'll add that it isn't just Lankinen. I didn't really have a great read on Lankinen but Anthony Stolarz has been a guy I've mentioned for a few years as being way better than the opportunities he was getting (he was obviously better than John Gibson for years but Anaheim just kept playing Gibson because pedigree) and it was only this summer after about 5 years of elite backup play that he finally got a 'huge' $2.5 million AAV after leading the NHL in GAA and SV% last year. And now he's ripping it up for Toronto.

NHL teams and GMs are really f***ing terrible at evaluating goalies and continually default to making the 'safe' decision to overpay for some mediocre veteran with a history as a starter and a playoff run 4 or 5 years ago (Kuemper, Grubauer etc) over giving more opportunity to a guy who is actually performing.

 

[pitseleh]

Lankinen is good but he's never shown himself to be THIS good over any decent stretch of time or he'd be a starter right now. Obviously this is a player that the rest of the league slept on but at the same time let's not get carried away with small sample sizes.

There's a formula for the Canucks winning the cup and it involves Demko being at the top of his game. It's a lot to ask to expect that of Lankenin.

Lankinen does has ~15 GSAA over the past three seasons in 52 games. That would have put him 7th amongst starters last year. Agree there’s questions about whether that is sustainable if he has to take on a starter’s workload, particularly given his age, but there’s enough there to say he’s probably an above average starter.

 

[Peen]

Garland and Demko have the same amount of term left; 2 more seasons each.

Im saying they’d be better off taking the expiring year to evaluate demko further, like they are doing with Brock this year.

With Garland, they don't need to do that. They probably already know their max for Garland.

 

[Bourne Endeavor]

Lankinen is probably playing better right now than Demko did last year.

My realization over the last month has been like 'f*** me, this guy can't be trusted, and with the nature of his injury we'll probably never be able to trust him again'.

You obviously want to see Lankinen in a bit bigger sample size but if he's still .920ing and playing like this after 40 games, there might be some tough decisions that need to be made.

Admittedly, this is a legit concern of mine what with Demko being a UFA in two years. Barring a near perfect season next year, I'd be very cautious giving him any sort of huge deal like Swayman and Ullmark signed but he'll definitely fight for it.

 

[MS]

Im saying they’d be better off taking the expiring year to evaluate demko further, like they are doing with Brock this year.

With Garland, they don't need to do that. They probably already know their max for Garland.

I feel like Demko's contract post-2026 when he's 31+ years old with chronic knee and hip/groin issues is going to be awful for whoever signs it, whether it's us or someone else.

 

[Pastor Of Muppetz]

https://x.com/i/web/status/1629535946734546946

I always thought the trade rumors in 2023 was management testing the waters to see what a Demko trade would look like. The media put the whole rebuild/fire sale spin on it.

I don’t recall Allvin ever considering moving Demko..The trade rumors were concocted by Farhan Lalji..When pressed about the rumors Lalji backpedaled,and conceded he manufactured them.

I do agree though with the above posters ,that the management should lock down Lankinen..Demko’s health is an absolute wild card.

 

[Burke's Evil Spirit]

I would actually open up extension talks with Lankinen's agent right now. He's played well for3 seasons now. Would he go for 3x$3.5M or something? How much longer can a 29 year old goalie wait to secure the bag? In a worst case scenario he'll be a slightly-overpriced 1B for Demko. Either way it would take a miracle for management to ever trust Demko again.

 

[Nuckles]

I would actually open up extension talks with Lankinen's agent right now. He's played well for3 seasons now. Would he go for 3x$3.5M or something? How much longer can a 29 year old goalie wait to secure the bag? In a worst case scenario he'll be a slightly-overpriced 1B for Demko. Either way it would take a miracle for management to ever trust Demko again.

I forget, don't they have to wait until January 1st to re-sign him since he was just signed to a 1 year deal?

 

[VanJack]

Hoping for another bleaching of the Oilers at home, if only to read another of Mark Spector's whiny columns over at Sportsnet.

Will be a tough one though......Oilers looked a lot better in the their last outing against the Knights at home, but were let down late by some poor play in their own zone.

Meantime watching the Preds slowly going down the tubes makes you wonder how they couldn't have found room or the likes of Sherwood and Lankinen for a combined salary of just $2.4m.

But as of right now, the Canucks are eternally grateful.

 

[Vector]

I forget, don't they have to wait until January 1st to re-sign him since he was just signed to a 1 year deal?

This is correct. As per the CBA section 50.5(f)(iv)

A Player who is party to a one-year SPC may not enter into an "extension"of such SPC prior to January 1 of the League Year covered by such SPC.

 

[calnuck]

Hoping for another bleaching of the Oilers at home, if only to read another of Mark Spector's whiny columns over at Sportsnet.

Will be a tough one though......Oilers looked a lot better in the their last outing against the Knights at home, but were let down late by some poor play in their own zone.

Meantime watching the Preds slowly going down the tubes makes you wonder how they couldn't have found room or the likes of Sherwood and Lankinen for a combined salary of just $2.4m.

But as of right now, the Canucks are eternally grateful.

They blew their load on Stamkos and Marchesaault. It blows my mind that people thought these would be quality signings. Stamkos hasn’t looked good for a while

 

[brock hughes007]

Any update on Dakota is he playing.

 

[Vector]

Any update on Dakota is he playing.

Team day off so no interview with Tocchet. Won't know anything until tomorrow.

 

[kanucks25]

Any update on Dakota is he playing.

Team day off so no interview with Tocchet. Won't know anything until tomorrow.

Given that's 3 days off in a row now including missing the last practice, I'd say it's doubtful he plays.

 

[M2Beezy]

Happy birthday man! Always enjoy your posts here!!

It’s funny. It feels like everyone on the Canucks board is a friend of mine but we don’t even know each other’s names or we could pass each other on the street and not know it’s someone we interact with

My actual name is Ronald Kenins, you can call me Ronny K from now on

 

[Angry Little Elf]

My actual name is Ronald Kenins, you can call me Ronny K from now on

I thought you were Michael Buble

 

[VanJack]

Lankinen is good but he's never shown himself to be THIS good over any decent stretch of time or he'd be a starter right now. Obviously this is a player that the rest of the league slept on but at the same time let's not get carried away with small sample sizes.

There's a formula for the Canucks winning the cup and it involves Demko being at the top of his game. It's a lot to ask to expect that of Lankenin.

That's what a lot of people said about Casey DeSmith last season. He'd proven himself a decent backup, but was deemed expendable by both the Pens and Canadians. And those two teams aren't exactly 'goaltending factories'.

But DeSmith parlayed his solid year in Vancouver into a three-year deal with the Stars. The Canucks were really forced to let him walk, and I suspect as good as he's been, the same future might be an inevitability for Lankinen. He's probably rapidly pricing himself out of Vancouver.

 

[olafsson]

Soilers have been slumping as of late. Canucks need to put in another full effort as they did against the kings and just crush Edmonton. Show them who’s the top team

 

[EpochLink]

McDavid came back from his injury too early but even before that, he's been slumping.
Reddit claims that ever since McDavid got married, he's been miserable lmao.

the heck man.