Analyzing the Canucks’ goaltending depth post-Arturs Silovs trade

So your team just traded its third-string goaltender who also just led them to a Calder Cup Championship and was named AHL Playoffs MVP. You might be sad, you might be angry, you might be pleased to see the return your team managed to get! What you should definitely be curious about is how such a trade affects the rest of your team’s depth at the goaltending position. Let’s dive in.

Over the weekend, the Vancouver Canucks dealt Arturs Silovs to the Pittsburgh Penguins, acquiring AHL forward Chase Stillman and a 2027 fourth-round pick in the process. Here’s how the Canucks’ goaltending depth chart is looking after the trade.

NHL goalies: Thatcher Demko and Kevin Lankinen

The biggest reason Silovs was traded in the first place was that the Canucks are more than comfortable with an NHL tandem of Thatcher Demko and Kevin Lankinen. With both goaltenders now signed to extensions, the Vancouver goal crease is slated to be a relatively crowded one, which would have meant Silovs hitting waivers and being claimed for nothing.

AHL goalies (in order of placement on the depth chart): Nikita Tolopilo, Ty Young, and Jiri Patera

Part of the reason the Canucks felt comfortable moving off of Silovs is that they have a couple of young goaltenders in Abbotsford who they’re eager to see take the next step in their development. Both were name dropped by GM Patrik Allvin earlier in the offseason when he was asked about Silovs.

“Arty is a young and extremely good goalie. He was just the MVP in the American League playoffs, outstanding. He’s played at the highest stage for Latvia and will be on their Olympic roster. We’ll see over the next couple of weeks if we carry the goalies to camp or if a decision is made prior to it.”

Tolopilo, signed as an undrafted free agent after leading the Allsvenskan league in save percentage in 2022-23 has split starts with Silovs during his first two years in Abbotsford. He made his NHL debut late in 2024-25, when he picked up the win against the San Jose Sharks. He figures to be the first man the Canucks call up in the event of an injury to one of their NHL goaltenders. In other words, write down Tolopilo’s name as the new clear-cut third-string goaltender for the Canucks post-Silovs trade.

Meanwhile, Ty Young should get every opportunity to build off of what was a very strong first season of pro hockey in 2024-25 as a full time AHL goalie. He should be getting a near even split with Tolopilo, with Jiri Patera situating in as the third goalie down in Abbotsford. Young turned in a remarkable .926 save percentage through 22 ECHL starts with the Kalamazoo Wings, and even put up a .904 save percentage through 11 AHL games in Abbotsford. Young has certainly earned the right to take the next stage in his development at the AHL level, and will look to continue to build off of that strong first pro season in 2025-26. Read our recent interview with Young by clicking here!

ECHL: Aku Koskenvuo and Jonathan Lemieux*

Look for Aku Koskenvuo to get a similar opportunity as Ty Young with the Kalamazoo Wings for his first season of pro hockey. After signing with the Canucks late this past season, the Harvard product got to spend some time with the Abbotsford Canucks before heading back to school to finish his final exams, but didn’t get into a game.

That could certainly change next season.

Koskenvuo’s collegiate career wasn’t much to write home about, but he has real tools that the Canucks believe in, and it will be interesting to see how he fares when he makes the jump to pro hockey next season. Like Young, he’ll get the opportunity to play games in the ECHL. But will he be able to run with those opportunities the way Young did? Only time will tell.

*Jonathan Lemieux doesn’t have a contract with the Vancouver Canucks. Rather, he’s on an AHL/ECHL contract. So while he’s technically part of the organization and will be at training camp, he doesn’t appear on most iterations of the Canucks’ depth chart.

OHL: Aleksei Medvedev 

And last, but certainly not least, is the Canucks’ newly-drafted prized goaltending prospect Aleksei Medvedev. He’s the Canucks’ lone non-pro goaltender under contract, and he’s got a high ceiling.

As you know by now, we are very high on Medvedev and his potential. He’ll be with the OHL’s London Knights next season and signed his entry-level contract with the Canucks late last week.

A final look

All in all, the Canucks’ depth chart looks something like this:

Thatcher Demko
Kevin Lankinen
Nikita Tolopilo
Ty Young
Jiri Patera
Aku Koskenvuo
Jonathan Lemieux
Aleksei Medvedev