Vancouver Canucks need to save goaltender Kevin Lankinen

The Province argues that the Vancouver Canucks must improve defensively to help struggling goaltender Kevin Lankinen, who holds an .808 save percentage and a 6.03 goals-against average. Lankinen is in the second year of a five-year contract carrying a $4.5 million annual cap hit. While his play has appeared scrambly, analytics show he has faced chaotic defensive coverage and an exceptionally high number of quality opponent scoring chances.

Lankinen has allowed 31 goals on 74 high-danger opportunities and surrendered eight goals off rebounds, performing notably worse than teammate Leevi Merilainen. Additionally, Vancouver's poor penalty killing was highlighted during a 5-4 defeat against the Anaheim Ducks, where Anaheim converted three power-play opportunities. The Province concludes that while Lankinen must elevate his own performance, the coaching staff needs to urgently resolve ongoing penalty-kill and defensive deficiencies.