Lankinen’s Rough Start Highlights Canucks Depth Questions

Monday night was a long one for Kevin Lankinen and the Vancouver Canucks. In his first start of the 2025-26 season, Lankinen gave up four goals in a 5-2 loss to the St. Louis Blues, stopping 30 of 34 shots. A fifth goal came into the empty net with just over two minutes left. Not exactly the night you want when stepping back between the pipes.

Lankinen Wasn’t as Good for the Canucks as Last Season

Two of the goals came courtesy of Blues prospect Jimmy Snuggerud, including one on the power play. The others were scored by veterans Brayden Schenn and Nick Bjugstad. Lankinen’s outing was a reminder that even solid NHL backups can be tested when facing a mix of skilled forwards and hungry prospects in their first game of the year.

It’s important to remember the context: Lankinen wasn’t expected to be the Canucks’ starter. Thatcher Demko took the first two games of the season and, assuming he stays in good health, he’ll resume that role Thursday against the Dallas Stars. Lankinen logged 51 regular-season games for Vancouver last year with a 25-15-10 record, a 2.62 goals-against average, and four shutouts. He was stepping into a familiar but temporary spotlight. Last season, injuries to Demko created opportunities for Lankinen, and he made the most of them.

Still, the result against the Blues shows that depth in net remains a question mark for Vancouver. Lankinen did what most backups do: he kept the team in it early, faced a heavy workload, and eventually got beaten by a mix of skill, bad luck, and timing. The Canucks’ defense didn’t make it easy, either, giving up odd-man rushes and power-play opportunities that can rattle any goalie.