Canucks: 3 takeaways from 3-1 win over Blues

Thatcher Demko sings the blues

Head coach, Travis Green extended Jacob Markstrom’s All-Star break a few days by giving backup goalie, Thatcher Demko the net against St. Louis. The rookie netminder got the job done once before back on October 17th. Who’s to say he can’t rise to the occasion again and help shut down the champs? Besides, he was solid against San Jose and he can’t be cold off the bench towards the finish line.

An extremely tight playoff race makes Markstrom likely to get the majority of the starts moving forward. Demko took the crease giving Markstrom an extra day, but Demko was going to do everything he could to help the Canucks win and make himself stand out.

Calm, cool and collected. Demko was solid from the opening whistle until the final horn. He made timely saves in the third period turning down the opposition’s power play and shutting the door on the Blues’ heavy onslaught of shooters. Late in the third, Demko had fans on their feet with a game-saving cross-crease stop.

Arguably his best performance to date, Demko was phenomenal. He made 36 stops on 37 shots. That’s a crazy performance for a rookie goalie who hasn’t played in nine days. Hard to give up the crease after such a good performance. The first star of the night!  His home performance numbers jumping off the page with another win. 11-1-1 at home in his career.