Thatcher Demko

Demko playing for Boston College

Demko began playing ice hockey in San Diego at the age of 4. He later moved to Los Angeles to play youth hockey for the LA Junior Kings.[1] In the 2011–12 season, Demko played with the Omaha Lancers of the United States Hockey League (USHL). He joined the U.S. National Development Team during the 2012–13 season,[2] winning silver medal with the team at the 2012 World U-17 Hockey Challenge.[3]

Demko was named the 2016 Co-Player of the Year by the Hockey East Association on March 17, 2016, along with UMass Lowell goaltender Kevin Boyle,[4] while receiving the Mike Richter Award (most outstanding goaltender in NCAA men's ice hockey).[5] Demko was ranked number 1 by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau on their final list of the top draft-eligible North American goalies leading into the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.[6]

After his third season at Boston College, Demko signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Vancouver Canucks on April 20, 2016.[7]

The Canucks assigned Demko to their American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Utica Comets for the 2016–17 season.[8] He would record his first win on November 12, 2016, in a 3–2 overtime victory over the Hartford Wolf Pack.[9] Demko was recalled on December 10, due to Ryan Miller's injury;[10] but was reassigned to the Comets on December 13, without playing a game.[11] On March 4, 2017, Demko earned his first shutout, helping the Comets defeat the Albany Devils by a score of 3–0.[12]

On March 31, 2018, Demko made his NHL debut for the Canucks, stopping 26 shots en route to a 5–4 overtime victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets.[13] Demko would spend the rest of the season with the Utica Comets (AHL).

On January 2, 2019, the Canucks announced they had dealt backup goalie Anders Nilsson to the Ottawa Senators, opening up a full-time backup position for Demko.[14] Demko, who had spent most of the season recovering from a concussion[15] and playing in the AHL, would finish the season on the Canucks roster for the first time.

On April 24, 2019, the Canucks signed Demko to a two-year, $2.1 million contract extension.[16] In the 2019-20 season that followed, Demko would continue playing the backup for the majority of the regular season, until a serious knee injury sidelined the incumbent Jacob Markstrom for the next month.[17] Beginning on February 25, 2020 against the Montreal Canadiens, Demko would start 7 of the final 8 games of the season, going 3-4-0 and posting a .906 save percentage. His most impressive game in that stretch came on March 10, 2020, a 45-save shootout win over the New York Islanders, which happened to be the last Canucks game before the 2019–20 season was cut short.

On September 1, 2020, Demko would make his first NHL playoff start in relief of the injured Markstrom, allowing just 1 goal on 43 shots in a 2–1 win over Vegas. In doing so, he became the first rookie goalie since José Théodore in 1997 to win an elimination game in his playoff debut.[18] On September 3, 2020, he made 48 stops and recorded his first career playoff shutout in a 4–0 victory over Vegas, becoming the first rookie goalie to win his first two career playoff starts while facing elimination since Jacques Plante in 1953.[19] The 48-save shutout in game 2 would set an NHL record for most saves in a playoff shutout by a rookie, as well as the most in a game that ended in regulation, rookie or not.[20] In his first three playoff starts, Demko made 123 stops on 125 shots for a remarkable .984 save percentage, nearly leading the Canucks to a 7 game series upset of the Vegas Golden Knights. Demko was named the first star for all three of the games he played.