Lankinen fitting in quickly with Canucks after late signing

CHICAGO – Kevin Lankinen entered September without a contract, but the unrestricted free agent wasn’t sweating it.

“I knew there were opportunities out there and kind of just keeping the cards to myself and seeing what would be the best fit at the end of the day,” the Vancouver Canucks goaltender said. “So, I knew there were opportunities and to just stay patient and calm and trusting the process and eventually I thought I found a good fit.”

Did he ever.

With starting goalie Thatcher Demko out indefinitely with a lower-body injury, the Canucks signed Lankinen to a one-year, $875,000 contract on Sept. 21. He’s been great for them thus far, going 3-0-1 with a 1.70 goals-against average, .941 save percentage and one shutout in four starts.

Lankinen is expected to start again when the Canucks play the Pittsburgh Penguins at Rogers Arena on Saturday (10 p.m. ET; CBC, SN, CITY, SN-PIT).

Demko was 35-14-2 with a 2.45 GAA, .918 save percentage and five shutouts in 51 starts last season and was a finalist for the Vezina Trophy, awarded to the League’s top goaltender as voted by the Professional Hockey Writers Association.

Lankinen is 48-43-13 with a 3.02 GAA, .906 save percentage and four shutouts in 116 career games (105 starts) with the Chicago Blackhawks, Nashville Predators and Canucks.

“I like the fact that he’s a pretty unflappable guy but I really like his puck skills,” Canucks coach Rick Tocchet said said. “I mean, it’s an underrated thing but it really helps our defensive structure, on breakouts.

“Teams in the past used to rim pucks out on us a lot. Now I find the last couple of games 'Lanks' was in net, they’re not rimming as much because they know he’s going to stop the puck. That’s a bonus for us.”

Lankinen had his first practice with the Canucks on Sept. 24, five days after their training camp began in Penticton, British Columbia and three days after he signed with them. The transition, he said, “was pretty straightforward.”

“As a goalie it’s probably easier because you’re just stopping the puck. That’s the job,” he said with a laugh. “At the end of the day there’s a lot more that goes into it as well, the off-ice stuff, the chemistry and getting to know everybody and feeling comfortable. Everyone’s been doing a really good job to make me feel good and comfortable. That’s helped me to perform at my best level here.”

If coming into this situation brought anxiety, Lankinen isn’t showing it. The 29-year-old has an affable personality, and that cool, calm demeanor has served him well.

“I didn’t know a lot about him (before he signed in Vancouver). He’s an awesome guy, works really hard and he’s been playing outstanding for us,” Canucks forward J.T. Miller said. “So, that’s exciting and I’m happy for him.”

The undrafted Lankinen played his first two NHL seasons with the Blackhawks, where he had the bulk of the starts (37) in the 56-game, COVID-shortened 2020-21 season before backing up Marc-Andre Fleury in 2021-22.

He spent the past two seasons with the Nashville Predators, where he backed up Juuse Saros, who finished fifth in the Vezina Trophy voting last season and fourth in 2022-23.

“He was great. I love 'Lanks,'” Predators coach Andrew Brunette said. “I think what he brought every day, the work ethic, the competitive nature he has and everything he does and he won some huge games for us.

“I think that just speaks of his personality and who he is. He loves the moment. We miss him. I thought he was a really good piece for our team. He and 'Juice' (Saros) had great chemistry together. They're both highly competitive guys."

Saros played 64 games in each of the past two seasons, so Lankinen didn’t get as many starts as he did in Chicago. But he said working with Saros was “huge” for his development.

“Even the mindset going there was, ‘OK, I’m going to take these years to build up my game. I know I have the talent to be a successful goalie in the League,’” Lankinen said. “But then (it was also) having the chance to work with one of the best goalies in the world on a daily basis, see his habits and learn from him and just work on my game and having good results in the games as well.

“Off the ice we put a lot of work with goalie coach Ben Vanderklok over there and I think that those few years there have helped me grow not only as a goalie but as a person as well.”

Lankinen was patient at a time where he could’ve been very anxious. It’s paying off so far with Vancouver.

“Playing these guys last year in the (Stanley Cup) Playoffs, I know what the team looks like and where they’re going,” he said. “They’re building and there are a lot of great pieces here, from defense to offense, coaching staff and goaltending. Everything’s in place here, so I felt like it was a great opportunity for me to join a competing team and I’m thankful for being part of this.”

NHL.com independent correspondent Bruce Miles contributed to this report.