Uncertainty now surrounds whether Thatcher Demko will be prepared to begin the 2026-27 NHL season, and recent developments confirm those suspicions.
On Thursday, the Vancouver Canucks officially confirmed what general manager Ryan Johnson had previously hinted at during conversations with Postmedia earlier in the week: the team has secured a veteran goaltender for training camp due to concerns over Demko’s return-to-play timeline.
Veteran goaltender Chris Driedger, who boasts 68 NHL regular-season games and 18 playoff appearances, will report to the Canucks’ camp in Penticton next month on a tryout basis.
As Johnson stated on Tuesday, the organization is handling the Demko situation with no rigid timeline, noting that the goaltender will be ready when he is fully recovered.
This cautious approach is entirely understandable given the significant surgery the Canucks’ top goaltender underwent earlier this year. The team announced in January that Demko would undergo a procedure to address a hip issue. By the end of the season, Demko informed the media that he had been suffering from severe hip stiffness, a condition that progressively worsened throughout the campaign until he could no longer play his position.
According to Demko, the procedure will restore the necessary range of motion required to perform at his highest level.
Demko’s rehabilitation has progressed smoothly this summer. He has been skating and training with the Canucks’ staff, including goalie coach Marko Torenius, which is permitted under the collective bargaining agreement. So dedicated has he been to his recovery that he has spent nearly the entire summer in Vancouver.
Depending on Demko’s readiness for training camp, Driedger will serve as either the third or fourth NHL-experienced goaltender, joining Kevin Lankinen and Nikita Tolopilo.
Even if Demko were fully recovered, adding Driedger to the roster makes strategic sense, ensuring that both primary NHL skater groups have NHL-caliber goaltending. Typically, training camp is divided into three groups: the main NHL squad, a secondary group of likely call-ups, and a third group consisting of players clearly bound for the AHL.
Keeping Driedger in camp also provides an opportunity to evaluate whether Nikita Tolopilo can be successfully waived at the first available chance. As more teams are likely to retain three goaltenders on their NHL rosters, the probability of another team claiming Tolopilo is higher than in previous years. Logic dictates that delaying his waiver claim reduces the likelihood that alternative options will be available for other teams.
Driedger’s presence at camp further indicates that the Canucks are more likely to begin the season with three goaltenders on the NHL roster. Should Tolopilo clear waivers, there is a strong possibility that he or Driedger will open the season as the AHL’s top goaltender; currently, the Abbotsford Canucks are thin in net.
With Jiri Patera signing with the Bruins during the off-season, the Abbotsford depth chart is left with only Aku Koskenvuo and Ty Young as the primary options. Both goaltenders possess clear potential, though they both split playing time between the AHL and ECHL last season.
By Patrick Johnston
