Vancouver Canucks want to avoid LTIR this season: Jim Rutherford Fitnessnacks

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Even with worries about their goalies, the Canucks are treading cautiously in their roster-building approach for the 2024-25 NHL season

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Published Sep 04, 2024  •  3 minute read

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Vancouver Canucks President of Hockey Operations Jim Rutherford (right) and General Manager Patrik Allvin. Photo by Jason Payne /PNG

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Talking about injuries is never something Jim Rutherford is keen to do.

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But with lots of questions swirling around the health of the Vancouver Canucks’ two main goalies, he is ever so slightly letting his guard down.

“Fair to say that we will wait until they get their training camp physicals,” the Canucks’ president of hockey operations told Postmedia on Wednesday about the status of Thatcher Demko and Arturs Silovs, who both have question marks hanging around them.

Demko injured his knee in the first game of the Stanley Cup playoffs last spring and although he was close to a return by the time the Canucks were eliminated by the Edmonton Oilers in Game 7 of the second round, he has reportedly made slow progress since in a return to full health. Silovs is dealing with “knee ligament inflammation,” according to the Latvian Hockey Federation. The Canucks’ No. 2 goalie had been expected to play for his national team last weekend in an Olympic qualifying tournament, but was a surprise late scratch.

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So far, the Canucks have been playing down the situation.

But they have also put out feelers to free agent goalies Kevin Lankinen and Antti Raanta. Ideally, the Canucks would bring one in on a professional tryout (PTO), which doesn’t bind the team to the player but would provide the Canucks cover in goal during the pre-season.

Lankinen, it’s clear, would prefer a full-on contract offer.

Raanta’s interests aren’t known, but it is notable that the veteran Finn played for Canucks coach Rick Tocchet for four seasons while Tocchet was the bench boss in Arizona.

Rutherford’s commitment to playing down the situation even extended to himself, quipping that he didn’t know if he, with long playing experience of his own as an NHL goalie, was an option for a PTO.

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“Haven’t had my physical yet,” he joked, when asked if his 75-year-old knees might be up to the task of a training camp, 41 years after he last suited up for a professional game.

No matter the status of the team’s netminders, the Canucks’ front office is always discussing contingencies and possible other moves. You never know when a player might become available.

Overarching all this is the Canucks’ cap situation. Rutherford did acknowledge that they don’t want to have to use the salary cap relief measures available from putting a player on long-term injured reserve.

“What we want to do is start the season without someone on LTIR,” he said.

That’s a notable admission. The Canucks were frustrated at the deadline last year by their cap situation — they were over the cap, with the bulk of Tucker Poolman’s contract shuffled onto LTIR.

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At the moment, they are under the cap, even with Poolman placed on conventional injured reserve. And if they stay under the cap as the season progresses, the savings made will accrue and could make a very useful total come the trade deadline — they could add a veteran player for another playoff push.

That wasn’t possible last season because they had no cap space banked. If they had, there was a good chance they would have been able to add a defender like Chris Tanev or a winger such as Tyler Toffoli.

In the meantime, questions will remain about the Canucks’ goalie situation. Rutherford acknowledged to Sportsnet’s Iain MacIntyre that both the team’s goalies are hard at work in preparing for the season.

Demko apparently is back on the ice this week, although CHEK-TV’s Rick Dhaliwal has previously reported that Demko’s rehabilitation has been slower than expected, casting doubt he will be ready for the beginning of training camp on Sept. 19 in Penticton. Silovs was sat by the Latvians after his knee inflammation popped up last month, which the team attributed to overtraining.

Rest now, so this doesn’t develop into a chronic issue, they said. Latvian team officials, including goalie coach — and former Canuck — Arturs Irbe, said they expected Silovs should still be ready for the season and apparently training camp.

pjohnston@postmedia.com

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Courtesy : https://theprovince.com/sports/hockey/nhl/vancouver-canucks/canucks-want-to-avoid-ltir-jim-rutherford