HC Rick Tocchet reveals goalie pull with 5 minutes left was a secret test for Vancouver Canucks players

By Abhilasha Aditi

Modified Apr 03, 2025 14:29 GMT

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The Vancouver Canucks lost 5–0 to the Seattle Kraken at Rogers Arena on Wednesday. Seattle’s Joey Daccord made 25 saves for his second shutout this season. The Canucks struggled to create chances and lost their third straight game, hurting their playoff hopes.

Andre Burakovsky scored a goal and an assist for Seattle. Jared McCann recorded three assists. Michael Eyssimont scored first after a Vancouver turnover in the neutral zone. Chandler Stephenson made it 2–0 in the second period. Shane Wright added another goal before the period ended. Burakovsky extended the lead in the third, and Adam Larsson scored an empty-net goal.

Late in the third period, Canucks coach Rick Tocchet made an unusual decision. He pulled goaltender Thatcher Demko with five minutes left while trailing by four goals. Tocchet later explained that it was a test for his players. He wanted to see who would keep pushing and who would give up.

"Well, you’re just trying to look for who’s giving up and who’s not. You never know—we might need a six-on-five goal on Saturday, so might as well do it now," he said postgame.

The Canucks are now eight points behind St. Louis for the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. Tocchet noted that his team lacked composure, especially on the power play.

"I think that early on, we saw a lot of nervousness. You know, we had a couple of power plays where you need some poise, and I didn’t think we had it," he said. "Then they got a couple of quick goals on us, and you could see guys were getting nervous, chasing the game. I think we had some guys that really gave some effort, but I didn’t think we had a lot of poise tonight."

Vancouver has now left only seven games in their hand.

Filip Chytil’s season in doubt, says Canucks coach Rick Tocchet

Filip Chytil might miss the rest of the season due to a concussion setback. Canucks coach Rick Tocchet said Chytil has good and bad days while recovering. Tocchet admitted the odds of him playing this season are low. Chytil joined Vancouver in January as part of the J.T. Miller trade.

"He would go out and skate and felt good, the next day not as good," Tocchet said (via ESPN). "To be honest with you guys, does he play this year? Maybe the odds are against it. Plus you don't want to put a guy in that type of position. But when a guy has good days and bad days, obviously you're not going to play the guy."

The Canucks are dealing with multiple injuries. Elias Pettersson is still day-to-day, while Quinn Hughes and Brock Boeser have missed games. Thatcher Demko also faced injury setbacks earlier this season. Despite these challenges, the team is still pushing for a playoff spot.