Canucks lineup tonight: Vancouver's projected lineup for game against Philadelphia Flyers | Oct. 11, 2024

On Friday, the Vancouver Canucks will look to pick up their first win of the NHL season after an OT loss to the Calgary Flames in their home opener on Wednesday. The game saw forward Brock Boeser flirt with a hat trick as he scored two goals on three shots, while JT Miller, Conor Garland and Daniel Sprong contributed goals of their own.

Despite that, netminder Arturs Silovs struggled against the Flames' relentless offense, posting a 76.9% save percentage on the evening. Heading into Friday's game against the Flyers, the team has Pius Suter listed as day-to-day, however, the belief is that he will play.

In addition, Thatcher Demko is on the injured reserve list along with center Dakota Joshua, who had surgery for testicular cancer in the offseason.

With that in mind, let's take a look at the Canucks' projected lineups for Friday's game:

Forwards

L1: Danton Heinen - JT Miller - Brock Boeser

L2: Jake DeBrusk - Elias Pettersson - Daniel Sprong

L3: Pius Suter - Aatu Raty - Conor Garland

L4: Nils Hoglander - Teddy Blueger - Kiefer Sherwood

Defense

L1: Quinn Hughes - Filip Hronek

L2: Carson Soucy - Tyler Myers

L3: Derek Forbort - Noah Juulsen

Goalies

Kevin Lankinen

Arturs Silovs

1st Powerplay Unit

Brock Boeser - Elias Pettersson - Jake DeBrusk

JT Miller - Quinn Hughes

2nd Powerplay Unit

Nils Hoglander - Pius Suter - Conor Garland

Filip Hronek - Daniel Sprong

1st Penalty Kill Unit

Teddy Blueger - Danton Heinen

Carson Soucy - Tyler Myers

2nd Penalty Kill Unit

JT Miller - Kiefer Sherwood

Derek Forbort - Vincent Desharnais

Looking closer at how the injury to Thatcher Demko could impact the Vancouver Canucks' season

One of the biggest stories heading into the 2024-25 NHL season is the lingering injury that starting netminder Thatcher Demko has been dealing with. The 28-year-old star suffered a lower injury during the Stanley Cup Playoffs last year and has been dealing with the effects ever since.

Earlier this week, reports indicated that he would be sidelined for the next 3-4 weeks, meaning he likely won't return until November. Of course, there's also a possibility that his return timeline gets pushed back given that he didn't begin skating and working on ice until just about a month ago.

In the meantime, the impact of his absence has already been felt on the Canucks. The team led 4-1 over the Flames, before giving up a 6-5 OT loss.

While Demko's return is on the horizon, if his return is pushed back any further, the Canucks could wind up digging themselves into a hole through the first few weeks of the season if Wednesday's game against Calgary is any indication.