After months of mystery, Vancouver Canucks goaltender Thatcher Demko finally shed some light on the injury that caused him to miss most of Vancouver’s run through the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season.
On Thursday in Penticton, B.C., at Canucks training camp, Demko told reporters that he has been dealing with a “unique” muscle injury in his lower body and that there is no timeline for his return. He is, however, confident he will be able to get back to 100 per cent at some point this season.
“We’re on a great trajectory right now, this is the most confident I’ve been in the rehab process up to date,” Demko said. “… Hopefully just keep progressing week to week. I’m not going to sit here and give you a timeline, that would just kind of create some problems for me potentially. I feel really confident in where we are headed and will hopefully be 100 per cent sooner rather than later.”
var adServerUrl = “”;
var $el = $( “#video_container-419973” );
var permalink = $el.closest(‘.snet-single-article’).data(‘permalink’);
/*
if ( “1” == true && ‘undefined’ !== typeof window.getIndexAds ) {
var so = {preroll:{1:{1:{siteID:191888},2:{siteID:191889}}}};
adServerUrl = window.getIndexAds( ‘http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ads?sz=640×360&cust_params=domain%3Dsportsnet.ca&iu=%2F7326%2Fen.sportsnet.web%2FVideo&ciu_szs=300×250&impl=s&gdfp_req=1&env=vp&output=vast&unviewed_position_start=1&ad_rule=1&vid=6362170593112&cmsid=384’, so, permalink);
} else {
adServerUrl = “http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ads?sz=640×360&cust_params=domain%3Dsportsnet.ca&iu=%2F7326%2Fen.sportsnet.web%2FVideo&ciu_szs=300×250&impl=s&gdfp_req=1&env=vp&output=vast&unviewed_position_start=1&ad_rule=1&vid=6362170593112&cmsid=384”;
}
*/
adServerUrl = “http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ads?sz=640×360&cust_params=domain%3Dsportsnet.ca&iu=%2F7326%2Fen.sportsnet.web%2FVideo&ciu_szs=300×250&impl=s&gdfp_req=1&env=vp&output=vast&unviewed_position_start=1&ad_rule=1&vid=6362170593112&cmsid=384”;
var adServerUrl_result = adServerUrl.includes(“cust_params”);
var queryString=”;
if(adServerUrl_result){
var gettheDUFI = false;
if (localStorage.getItem(“consent”) !== null && localStorage.getItem(“consent-targeting”) !== null)
gettheDUFI = localStorage.getItem(“theRED_loc”);
if(gettheDUFI){
queryString += “dufiid=” + gettheDUFI + ‘&’;
queryString += “ppid=” + gettheDUFI + ‘&’;
var ppid = “ppid=” + gettheDUFI + ‘&’;
}
var DUFI_IP = false;
if (localStorage.getItem(“consent”) !== null && localStorage.getItem(“consent-targeting”) !== null)
DUFI_IP = sessionStorage.getItem(“DUFI_IP”);
if(DUFI_IP){
queryString += “dufiip=” + DUFI_IP + ‘&’;
}
adServerUrl = adServerUrl.replace(/cust_params=/, ppid + ‘cust_params=” + encodeURIComponent(queryString) );
}
$el.after( unescape(“%3Cscript src=\”” + (document.location.protocol == “https:” ? “https://sb” : “http://b”) + “.scorecardresearch.com/beacon.js\” %3E%3C/script%3E”) );
$( document ).one( “ready’, function() {
$( “#video_container-419973” ).SNPlayer( {
bc_account_id: “1704050871”,
bc_player_id: “JCdte3tMv”,
//autoplay: true,
//is_has_autoplay_switch: false,
bc_videos: 6362170593112,
is_has_continuous_play: “false”,
adserverurl: adServerUrl,
section: “”,
thumbnail: “https://www.sportsnet.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/6362170593112-1024×576.jpg”,
direct_url: “https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/video/demko-describes-missing-playoff-games-as-low-point-of-my-career/”
});
});
var adServerUrl = “”;
var $el = $( “#video_container-741566” );
var permalink = $el.closest(‘.snet-single-article’).data(‘permalink’);
/*
if ( “1” == true && ‘undefined’ !== typeof window.getIndexAds ) {
var so = {preroll:{1:{1:{siteID:191888},2:{siteID:191889}}}};
adServerUrl = window.getIndexAds( ‘http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ads?sz=640×360&cust_params=domain%3Dsportsnet.ca&iu=%2F7326%2Fen.sportsnet.web%2FVideo&ciu_szs=300×250&impl=s&gdfp_req=1&env=vp&output=vast&unviewed_position_start=1&ad_rule=1&vid=6362170593112&cmsid=384’, so, permalink);
} else {
adServerUrl = “http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ads?sz=640×360&cust_params=domain%3Dsportsnet.ca&iu=%2F7326%2Fen.sportsnet.web%2FVideo&ciu_szs=300×250&impl=s&gdfp_req=1&env=vp&output=vast&unviewed_position_start=1&ad_rule=1&vid=6362170593112&cmsid=384”;
}
*/
adServerUrl = “http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ads?sz=640×360&cust_params=domain%3Dsportsnet.ca&iu=%2F7326%2Fen.sportsnet.web%2FVideo&ciu_szs=300×250&impl=s&gdfp_req=1&env=vp&output=vast&unviewed_position_start=1&ad_rule=1&vid=6362170593112&cmsid=384”;
var adServerUrl_result = adServerUrl.includes(“cust_params”);
var queryString=”;
if(adServerUrl_result){
var gettheDUFI = false;
if (localStorage.getItem(“consent”) !== null && localStorage.getItem(“consent-targeting”) !== null)
gettheDUFI = localStorage.getItem(“theRED_loc”);
if(gettheDUFI){
queryString += “dufiid=” + gettheDUFI + ‘&’;
queryString += “ppid=” + gettheDUFI + ‘&’;
var ppid = “ppid=” + gettheDUFI + ‘&’;
}
var DUFI_IP = false;
if (localStorage.getItem(“consent”) !== null && localStorage.getItem(“consent-targeting”) !== null)
DUFI_IP = sessionStorage.getItem(“DUFI_IP”);
if(DUFI_IP){
queryString += “dufiip=” + DUFI_IP + ‘&’;
}
adServerUrl = adServerUrl.replace(/cust_params=/, ppid + ‘cust_params=” + encodeURIComponent(queryString) );
}
$el.after( unescape(“%3Cscript src=\”” + (document.location.protocol == “https:” ? “https://sb” : “http://b”) + “.scorecardresearch.com/beacon.js\” %3E%3C/script%3E”) );
$( document ).one( “ready’, function() {
$( “#video_container-741566” ).SNPlayer( {
bc_account_id: “1704050871”,
bc_player_id: “JCdte3tMv”,
//autoplay: false,
//is_has_autoplay_switch: false,
bc_videos: 6362170593112,
is_has_continuous_play: “false”,
adserverurl: adServerUrl,
section: “”,
thumbnail: “https://www.sportsnet.ca/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/6362170593112-1024×576.jpg”,
direct_url: “https://www.sportsnet.ca/nhl/video/demko-describes-missing-playoff-games-as-low-point-of-my-career/”
});
});
The 28-year-old netminder first suffered the injury in March and was sidelined for 14 games. He returned in time to finish out the regular season but was injured again in the Canucks’ first playoff game and missed the remainder of their post-season run.
Demko admitted that his recovery from this rare injury “hasn’t been linear” and that he “hit a wall” during the summer. He also said that the injury seems to be unprecedented in the hockey world as they could not find another goaltender or player who has dealt with a similar situation.
But the goaltender said he has seen solid progression over the past few weeks and that the finish line is in sight.
“Sure it’s taken a little bit longer than obviously I would’ve liked, but especially the last couple weeks on the ice I’ve been feeling a lot better,” Demko said. “There is definitely some light at the end of the tunnel for me now and I have full confidence I’ll be back out there.”
The Canucks netminder also confirmed that he had another minor procedure this off-season that was unrelated to his current injury.
Demko was a Vezina Trophy finalist for the first time this past season. In 51 regular-season starts, the San Diego 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.
In Demko’s absence, 23-year-old Arturs Silovs is expected to handle the majority of the goaltending duties for the Canucks after he burst on the scene when he took over in last season’s playoffs.
Vancouver opens its pre-season schedule on Tuesday against the Seattle Kraken. The Canucks open the regular season on Oct. 9 against the Calgary Flames.