As the NHL season inches closer, the status of Thatcher Demko remains up in the air.
The Vancouver Canucks goaltender will reportedly not be ready for training camp or pre-season as he continues rehab on a knee injury, according to CHEK’s Rick Dhaliwal and The Athletic’s Thomas Drance.
Furthermore, his status for the regular-season opener against the Calgary Flames on Oct. 9 is questionable, but the team is hopeful he’ll be ready by then.
Demko, 28, has been dealing with the ailment for some time. He suffered the initial injury in March, missing 14 games, but returned to the team near the end of the regular season.
He went on to start Game 1 of the first-round playoff series against the Nashville Predators, but seemed to re-aggravate the injury, resulting in him missing the rest of the team’s post-season run.
In the second-round series against the Edmonton Oilers, there was speculation that Demko may return, but he never did despite the matchup going seven games. However, in his exit interview following the team’s elimination, Demko himself said that he would have “probably” been available had the team advanced to the Western Conference Final.
Demko was a Vezina Trophy finalist for the first time this past season. In 51 regular-season starts, the San Diego, Calif., native posted career-bests in save percentage (.918) and goals-against average (2.45) for a 35-14 record.
He has dealt with a swath of lower-body injuries throughout his seven-year career, including a groin injury in the 2022-23 season that caused him to miss 35 games.
Earlier this week, Vancouver moved renowned goalie coach Ian Clark to a new role, replacing him with minor-league goaltending coach Marko Torenius.
The Canucks’ training camp will be held in Penticton, B.C., from Sep. 19-22. Their pre-season begins on Sep. 24 when they host the Seattle Kraken.