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Canucks: 3 players who need to overcome the critics

By Brayden Ursel

EDMONTON, ALBERTA - AUGUST 30: Bo Horvat #53 of the Vancouver Canucks scores a goal past Marc-Andre Fleury #29 of the Vegas Golden Knights during the second period in Game Four of the Western Conference Second Round during the 2020 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Place on August 30, 2020 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
EDMONTON, ALBERTA - AUGUST 30: Bo Horvat #53 of the Vancouver Canucks scores a goal past Marc-Andre Fleury #29 of the Vegas Golden Knights during the second period in Game Four of the Western Conference Second Round during the 2020 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Place on August 30, 2020 in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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Thatcher Demko stops the puck for the Vancouver Canucks (Perry Nelson-USA TODAY Sports).
Thatcher Demko stops the puck for the Vancouver Canucks (Perry Nelson-USA TODAY Sports). /

Thatcher Demko

Thatcher Demko has been considered the goaltender of the Canucks’ future for quite some time now, but as it appears, the future is now here. Yes, Demko hasn’t been criticized like Virtanen and Juolevi have in the past, in fact, Demko stood on his head during a three-game elimination stretch where he single-handedly fought off the Vegas Golden Knights by making 125 saves. Quite honestly, it was the best playoff performance by a rookie goaltender that I have ever seen.

Believe it or not, Demko put himself on the map with his 2020 NHL Playoffs performance, but he has a very big net to fill with the departure of Vancouver’s back-to-back MVP goaltender. Yes, Braden Holtby is a good fill-in for the time being, but this is Demko’s crease now and a lot of the team’s success moving forward will be decided by how well the California kid can keep the puck out of the net.

Related Story. There is no reason for the Canucks to trade Virtanen. light

His career regular-season numbers aren’t spectacular. He carries a 3.06 GAA over 37 games and a below-average 0.906 save percentage. Obviously, that isn’t jaw-dropping in any sense of the word, but he’s still young and very new to the NHL game. What he was able to do in the playoffs was a really good implication of his future. He’s gotten better and better the more games he’s played, and now it’s time to see what he can do as a number one starter.

dark. Next. The Canucks and Virtanen agree on 2-year contract

What do you think Canucks Nation? Can these three players step up, fill the role they need to and ultimately silence the critics? Let us know in the comment section below and remember to always keep your eyes on The Canuck Way for everything Canucks-related in news.

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