Vancouver Canucks head coach Rick Tocchet confirmed on Monday that goaltender Thatcher Demko will return from injury on Tuesday against the Calgary Flames.
Demko has missed the past 14 games with a knee injury sustained against the Winnipeg Jets on March 9. Demko left the game early and did not take part in a full team practice until Thursday.
“At this point, I honestly don’t know,” Tocchet Thursday about Demko’s return date.
Obviously, the recovery has progressed and the team feels confident enough to get him in a game before the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Vancouver has two games remaining, a safe five-point lead on the Edmonton Oilers in the Pacific Division and trails the Dallas Stars by four points with one game in hand for the top seed in the Western Conference. In other words, Tuesday’s game against Calgary is important, and the Canucks will have their anchor back in the crease.
“Our goal since pretty much close to Day One was to get back to the Calgary game,” Demko said. “Obviously, I do feel good right now, but I think the timeline we’ve kind of been trying to follow and pushing for has been the Calgary game.”
Demko has returned to the NHL’s elite form this season. The 28-year-old netminder has gone 34-13-2 with a .917 save percentage and 2.47 goals-against average in 49 games. Both numbers would be career highs in his seventh season. He was selected for his second career All-Star Game and still ranks fourth in wins despite his absence.
“I’ve played close to 50 games this year, and that was a month ago,” he said. “It’s not like coming off the offseason where you haven’t played a game in 3-4 months and then trying to get it back. I feel pretty much right where I was when I went down, and I’m excited to get back in the net for some games.”
Vancouver hosts Calgary on Tuesday before wrapping up its regular-season schedule at the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday. The Canucks have hit a bit of a speed bump, going 5-4-1 in their past 10 games.
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