Thatcher Demko stopped all 33 shots he faced for his first shutout of the season as the Vancouver Canucks defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 3-0 at Rogers Arena.
Thatcher Demko was sharp on Thursday night. The team in front of him was not. Still, the Vancouver Canucks had enough to fend off the Chicago Blackhawks 3-0 at Rogers Arena. The offensively challenged Hawks are the lowest-scoring outfit in the National Hockey League and did nothing to change that as they were held off the scoresheet for the ninth time this season. Here are some post-game thoughts and observations:
- It had been 72 games since Thatcher Demko last blanked an opponent. It happened on December 6, 2021 in Bruce Boudreau's debut behind the Canucks bench. Demko made 31 saves that night in a 4-0 victory over the Los Angeles Kings. On Thursday, Demko was at his best in the third period protecting a 2-0 lead. He made 14 of his 33 saves over the final 20 minutes including quality looks for Lukas Reichel, Jujhar Khaira and Ian Mitchell. But Demko's best stop of the night was off Boris Katchouk on a first period power play. The Hawks forward was set up at the side of the net and looked to have room to stuff the puck home, but Demko flashed his left pad and denied the opportunity that would have opened the scoring in the hockey game. It was one of four saves on the night that Demko made off Katchouk.
- Demko also broke some personal news postgame when asked if he had been contacted by USA Hockey about representing his country at the upcoming World Hockey Championships. The Canucks netminder revealed that he had been in contact with Team USA but had declined an invitation to wear the Stars and Stripes overseas. Demko told reporters in the Canucks locker room postgame that his wife Lexi will be in her seventh month of pregnancy during this year's tournament which is being staged in Finland and Latvia. As such, Demko said he just couldn't afford to be so far from home with his wife approaching her due date. So when the Canucks season is over next week, Demko will focus on preparing to become a father for the first time.
- The city is buzzing about Akito Hirose just three games into his National Hockey League career. And with good reason. Hirose picked up his first two NHL assists helping out on the first two Canucks goals and for the third straight night saw his role and responsibility grow along with his ice time. After logging 14:01 in his big-league debut on Sunday, Hirose played 15:27 on Tuesday night. Against Chicago, Hirose crested the 20-minute mark earning 20:30 of ice time including 2:20 on the penalty kill and 2:13 on the power play. To put Hirose's usage in perspective, in just his third game with the Canucks he played more on Thursday than any one of Jack Rathbone, Christian Wolanin, Guillaume Brisebois, Noah Juulsen, Travis Dermott or Tucker Poolman has in any game this season.
- Hirose must feel like a grizzled veteran now compared to Cole McWard who become the latest player to make his Canucks and NHL debut. The right-shot defenseman out of Ohio State University signed his first pro contract on Tuesday, practiced with the Canucks for the first time on Wednesday and was promptly placed into the line-up against Chicago. In the process, McWard became the 16th defenseman to appear in a game for the Canucks this season. He acquitted himself reasonably well. He saw 14:35 of ice time and register a blocked shot playing primarily on a pairing with Ethan Bear. While Hirose had to wait for his third game, McWard got to experience victory in his first NHL appearance. If he plays on Saturday against Calgary (and he likely will with the Canucks having just six healthy blueliners), he'll likely find the going a little tougher than against a struggling team like the Blackhawks. The Flames are pushing for the playoffs and should be a desperate bunch when they arrive here for the Canucks home finale.
- Vitaly Kravtsov scored his first goal as a Canuck in his 14th game since being acquired from the New York Rangers. The goal was a fortunate bounce off Hawks defender Seth Jones late in a Vancouver power play three minutes into the second period. It extended the Canucks lead to 2-0 and provided a cushion on the scoreboard. Beyond the goal, though, there was a stark difference to the way Kravtsov played on Thursday compared to his mostly-forgettable performances to this point as a Canuck. Perhaps it was the fact he had been a healthy scratch in three straight games and four of the last five. Whatever the motivation, the 23-year-old was invested in the contest from the start and had a solid scoring chance off left wing eight minutes into the opening period. He also shared the team lead with five hits on the night. While he only played 10:54 and just 9:18 at even-strength (the low man in both categories for the Canucks on Thursday), Kravtsov managed to leave his mark on the hockey game. Head coach Rick Tocchet praised the way Kravtsov and his linemates Sheldon Dries and Jack Studnicka played, but he was quick to point out that it can't be an isolated occurrence. That Thursday has to be the norm for Kravtsov who drew into the line-up in place of Aidan McDonough.