Now that Thatcher Demko appears healthy after recording back-to-back wins earlier in the week, the Vancouver Canucks no longer needed three goalies on the roster. The odd-man out is Arturs Silovs, as the Canucks announced they reassigned Silovs back to their AHL affiliate, the Abbotsford Canucks, earlier today.
Due to Demko’s recurring injuries throughout the 2024-25 campaign, Silovs has been an oft-called-upon third netminder for Vancouver. He’s doubled his career games total this season, managing a 2-6-1 record in 10 games for the Canucks with a .861 SV% and 3.65 GAA. If the topical save percentage and goals-against average weren’t bad enough, Moneypuck has Silovs ranked 66th out of 72 netminders with 10 or more games played this year with a -10.2 goals saved above expected.
It’s a far cry from his impressive performance in last year’s playoffs. Vancouver tasked Silovs with backstopping the team through the back half of their Round One matchup against the Nashville Predators after Demko and Casey DeSmith fell to injuries. Including a series-deciding shutout in Game Six against Nashville, Silovs helped the Canucks take the eventual Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers to seven games.
Unsurprisingly, his time in Abbotsford this season has provided better results. Despite being rostered for Vancouver for much of the year, Silovs has posted a 11-4-0 record in 15 games with the AHL Canucks with a .902 SV% and 2.53 GAA. His save percentage has dropped mildly compared to last season, but Silovs has still proved a quality goaltender at the AHL level.