Kevin Lankinen signed a five-year, $22.5 million contract with the Vancouver Canucks on Friday. The deal, which begins next season, has an average annual value of $4.5 million. The 29-year-old would have been an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
“It feels great, obviously a good reward for all the hard work put in ever since I started playing hockey when I was three years old," Lankinen said. "I'm really grateful for the commitment and the trust from the management just to sign and how they kind of put faith in me, not just for this year, but the years to come. So really fortunate to be here in Vancouver with the great team, the guys in the locker room and a great coaching staff, and obviously the city of Vancouver itself, which is a really unique place to live, so I'm excited.”
After playing the past two seasons with the Nashville Predators backing up Juuse Saros, Lankinen signed a one-year, $875,000 contract with Vancouver on Sept. 21. With Thatcher Demko missing the first 24 games of the season while recovering from a knee injury sustained in the first game of the Stanley Cup Playoffs on April 21, Lankinen filled the No. 1 role and has gone 19-8-7 with a 2.53 goals-against average, .905 save percentage and four shutouts in 34 games (32 starts) this season.
“It was a conscious decision the past summer to kind of pass on a couple opportunities and look for the right one," Lankinen said. "It wasn't about not having a job. It was more about finding the right fit. And I felt like when we started talking with Vancouver, there was really something there, so I kind of left the safe and the familiar behind me and stepped into the unknown and made sure that the preparation is there and whatever opportunity shows up, I'm going to be ready for it. We’re really, really excited about Vancouver and the team here and how everything's been going here the first 5-6 months, so it feels good to be here long term and help the team win.”
He also played for Finland at the 4 Nations Face-Off, going 1-1-0 with a 4.84 GAA and .811 save percentage in two games.
"Kevin has done a great job for us in net this season," Canucks general manager Patrik Allvin said. "Right from the start of the year, he has shown a strong desire to compete and a willingness to do whatever it takes to win hockey games. A good leader and teammate, we wouldn't be in the position we are in right now without his strong play."
Demko made his season debut on Dec. 10 and is 6-6-3 with a 2.87 goals-against average and .891 save percentage in 17 games (all starts). In Vancouver's final game before the break for the 4 Nations Face-Off, Demko left midway through the first period of the 2-1 win. He is week to week with a lower-body injury and will not join the team on the five-game road trip that begins against the Vegas Golden Knights on Saturday (10 p.m. ET; SCRIPPS, CITY, SN, CBC).
“Thatcher has been great," Lankinen said. "Obviously, he's been dealing with his own stuff, which can be really hard mentally, but he's been super supportive ever since day one. He was one of the first guys to text me today when they announced the contract, which kind of shows he's a class act, and just being able to work with him, he's one of the best goalies in the world. He showed that over the years, and just seeing him from close range and being able to learn from him has been awesome. I think moving forward, it's a good thing for Thatcher, a good thing for me, to we're going to push each other to get better, and I think that will help the team win in the long term.”
In 146 NHL games with the Canucks, Nashville Predators and Chicago Blackhawks, Lankinen is 64-51-19 with a 2.94 GAA, .905 save percentage and seven shutouts in 146 games (133 starts).
NHL.com independent correspondent Kevin Woodley contributed to this report
