Price is Right: Playoffs should be a guarantee if Demko gives Canucks great goaltending

With training camp upon us, time for the annual gathering of the Thatcher Demko fan club. Every meeting, of course, begins and ends with a sacred cleansing ritual for Demko’s health. We’re thinking of adding one midway too. Just in case.

Much ink has been spilled already on the topic of the improved forward lines for the Canucks. Some has even been written on the “fine” or “decent” nature of the blue line corps.

And even if the latter proves to be true, the high water mark of the season still depends on Demko. He’s the insurance, he’s the safety net, he makes everything look better. So the Canucks will need him, need him healthy, and ideally having a great season.

“Last season I wanted to be a starting goalie. This season, I want to be one of the top goalies and take that next step.”

🗣 Thatcher Demko & Bo Horvat meet with the media prior to Training Camp starting@TD_Canada | #Canucks pic.twitter.com/xYNKhLZ191

— Vancouver #Canucks (@Canucks) September 21, 2022

The Canucks can likely make the playoffs with a merely “good” Demko season. But a “great” season should guarantee it, given the improvements elsewhere.

His traditional stats weren’t super gaudy last year. — 14th in save percentage in the NHL for instance.

But when you view that through the prism of minutes played, shots faced, and quality of shots faced, a .915 save percentage looks pretty darn good. That’s why Demko’s a stats darling. It’s why Clear Sight Analytics’ Stephen Valiquette puts Demko alongside the likes of Andrei Vasilevskiy, Jacob Markstrom, Jusse Saros, and Ilya Sorokin — with only Igor Shesterkin on a level above.

There’s pressure on Demko, absolutely. But maybe the improvements in the forward ranks are not just on offence. Maybe guys like Ilya Mikheyev and Curtis Lazar can help the team defence, reduce the workload and risk level, and maybe Demko can not only survive, but flourish to an even higher level.

And for the games when Demko isn’t playing? Now that might be the pressure point.

Should we start a Spencer Martin fan club too?