What is Demko's injury? NHL insiders share intel on Canucks goalie

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Thatcher Demko is injured again and that’s bad news for the Vancouver Canucks. He’s one of the best goalies in the league, and the drop off to either Casey DeSmith or Arturs Silovs is significant.

But how long will he be out?

That’s the question on everyone’s mind right now.

Demko will miss tonight’s game, and head coach Rick Tocchet said he’s “day to day.” Take an injury status update from any NHL coach with a grain of salt, though.

Given Demko recently returned from a knee injury, most observers assumed this was a re-aggravation of that ailment, perhaps suffered on his sensational post-to-post save on Anthony Beauvillier early in the first period on Sunday.

But that’s not necessarily what NHL insiders are saying.

TSN’s Farhan Lalji reports that while this injury is to the same knee Demko hurt on March 9, it’s not the same injury. Demko had an MRI yesterday, Lalji adds.

I’m told Demko has an injury to the same knee that recently kept him out 5 weeks, even if it may not be a reoccurrence of the same injury. Had an MRI yesterday. Also hearing same as others, questionable to return for the series. #Canucks https://t.co/H8SopGpj4O

— Farhan Lalji (@FarhanLaljiTSN) April 23, 2024

Irfaan Gaffar’s reporting concurs with that information, that it’s a “new issue to the same knee.”

“His status for this series is very much in question,” Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli said in an interview with Sekeres and Price. “I don’t think it happened on the Beauvillier save. I don’t have any concrete details, but the earliest sense that I got was that this was something totally unrelated.”

.@DailyFaceoff's @frank_seravalli, who broke the Demko injury news, on Demko being out for Game 1:

"His status for this series is very much in question…I don't think it happened on the Beauvillier save." #Canucks@KalTire | https://t.co/7mDaE8A2Zw

— Sekeres and Price (@sekeresandprice) April 23, 2024

“Something happened late in the game Sunday night against the Nashville Predators… it did happen late,” said TSN’s Darren Dreger. “He did not feel right on Monday so the Vancouver Canucks’ medical department decided… to do a further investigation.”

Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet also reports that this is a new injury, but there’s still lots of unknown.

“I don’t think they really know yet, to be perfectly honest,” Friedman said in an interview with Sportsnet 650. “Even if they knew, I’m not convinced they would say it so quickly.”

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