The Vancouver Canucks figure to be one of the most active teams on the NHL trade market this offseason, but sometimes adding means you have to subtract as well.
After locking up standout free agent signing Kevin Lankinen to a long-term contract extension in February, subtraction, at least at the goalie position, is starting to look more likely than not.
Longtime Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko, who is actually slightly younger than Lankinen, is tipped to be one of the top names on the trade block this summer. At least, that's what NHL insider Frank Seravalli is believing and feeling at this moment in time.
On Wednesday morning, Seravalli dropped his preliminary list of the 20 hottest trade targets around the NHL for Daily Faceoff, and Demko was one of two Canucks featured on the list. The other, of course, is superstar center Elias Pettersson, but that will be a far more complicated and nuanced discussion.
Demko, 29, is heading into the last year of the five-year, $25 million ($5 million AAV) contract he signed with the Canucks on March 31, 2021, making him eligible to sign a contract extension with the Canucks on July 1.
The difficulty in what would otherwise be an easy decision is that Demko had suffered a career-altering knee injury late in 2024 - a permanent one that has altered his training routine and stance, among other things. The San Diego, Calif., native did bounce back at the end of the season after getting his game conditioning back, but this surge in form created more questions than answers.
Would the Canucks be smarter to trade Demko now, after he ended the season on a high and a free agent market seemingly devoid of starting goalies? What happens if Demko again lays an egg to start the 2025-26 season?
On top of this, Demko will potentially be in need of a raise from his current $5 million cap hit, whereas Lankinen's deal has him at just $4.5 million through the 2029-30 season. That's a lot of money to commit to a goaltending platoon that grades out as average at best if Demko cannot return to his prior All-Star form.
The 29-year-old wants to stay in Vancouver for the long haul, but it might not be feasible or smart for either side at this stage.
"The Canucks have an interesting dilemma on their hands. They have a talented goaltender who is one of the faces of their franchise dealing with a significant injury. He battled through it and put up respectable numbers, and looked great on some nights. But the Canucks also re-signed Kevin Lankinen to a five-year extension. And Demko’s deal is up after one more," Seravalli wrote of Demko. "Will they try to move him? Or do they like the tandem? Demko seemed awfully loyal to coach Rick Tocchet. Wondering if a reunion in Philadelphia is possible."
This is neither the first nor last time the Flyers and Canucks will be linked to deals with each other, especially now that Rick Tocchet has joined his former club once again.
The questions posed above are examples of what the Canucks' front office will be mulling over in the coming weeks and months, though the draft is roughly a month away. If they want to strike while the iron is hot, time is ticking.