Lekkerimaki Demoted: Vancouver Canucks Head Coach Rick Tocchet Announces Starting Goaltender Against Oilers
Photo credit: NHL.com
The Vancouver Canucks and Edmonton Oilers will do battle tonight and it's up in the air whether or not 2023 first-round pick Jonathan Lekkerimaki will play.
It's Hockey Day in Canada and the Vancouver Canucks are getting ready for a rematch of their 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs second round series against Connor McDavid and the Edmonton Oilers.
Tonight's game marks their second meeting of the 2024-25 season, with Edmonton taking the two points back on November 9th after a 7-3 win over the Canucks.
The Canucks held an optional skate on Saturday morning and there weren't many on the ice, but afterwards, it was revealed who will be getting the start against the Oilers tonight.
Rick Tocchet announces starting goaltender, potentially questionable decision on Jonathan Lekkerimaki
When meeting with reporters, Rick Tocchet said that Thatcher Demko will get his second straight start after dropping Thursday's contest with the Los Angeles Kings by a score of 6-1.
Demko has appeared in nine games this season for the Canucks where he has a 2-3-3 record, a 3.39 goals against average and an .872 save percentage.
Tocchet also confirmed that defenseman Noah Juulsen will miss tonight's game, his second in a row, with an undisclosed injury.
Then came an interesting tidbit about 2022 first-round pick Jonathan Lekkerimaki, as Rick Tocchet shared that he was unsure if the 20-year-old would be playing tonight's game against Edmonton.
"Demko starts tonight. Juulsen out again. For what it's worth, Tocchet told Finnish reporter he wasn't sure if Lekkerimaki is playing tonight. Lekkerimaki only #Canucks skater on ice with goalies this morning" Jeff Paterson of Rink Wide: Vancouver said.
If Rick Tocchet is going to make Jonathan Lekkerimaki a healthy scratch tonight, that's probably not the best decision, especially considering he played well against Los Angeles on Thursday.
It's also not ideal to have your top prospect, who's only 20-years-old, sitting in the press box in the National Hockey League when he could be developing down in the AHL with Abbotsford while getting top line minutes.
Should Jonathan Lekkerimaki be made a healthy scratch for tonight's game, it's safe to assume that Max Sasson will draw into the lineup for his first action since January 10th against the Carolina Hurricanes.
Puck drop for tonight's game against the Edmonton Oilers is set for 7 pm PT on CBC and Sportsnet.
Previously on CanucksDaily
| POLL | ||
JANVIER 18 | 564 ANSWERS Lekkerimaki Demoted: Vancouver Canucks Head Coach Rick Tocchet Announces Starting Goaltender Against Oilers Do you think the Vancouver Canucks should send Jonathan Lekkerimaki to the AHL? | ||
| Yes, he needs to be playing every night | 337 | 59.8 % |
| No, keep him in the NHL for now | 227 | 40.2 % |
| List of polls | ||
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