The Vancouver Canucks have made two roster moves ahead of tonight’s match against the Los Angeles Kings, calling up forward Jonathan Lekkerimäki and re-assigning goaltender Jiří Patera to the AHL. Lekkerimäki’s last NHL game was on October 19 against the Washington Capitals in a game that saw him depart due to injury, while Patera’s last start was on November 17 against the Florida Panthers.
With a report circulating earlier today that Kevin Lankinen could be back to start tonight, this particular move indicates that there’s a very good chance of this happening as Nikita Tolopilo played in yesterday’s 3-2 loss. Lankinen missed the first two games of this road trip due to personal reasons.
Throughout the past approximately two weeks, Lekkerimäki has been playing in the AHL after being taken off the injured reserve in mid-November. The forward has scored three goals and two assists in this span of time with Abbotsford despite the team’s unfortunate record to start the season. Lekkerimäki will add a massive boost to the Canucks’ offence though it is currently unclear where he’ll slot into their lineup.
Vancouver plays the Los Angeles Kings tonight in what will be their final game in California during this road trip. From there, they’ll make a stop in Denver to face the Colorado Avalanche before heading back to Vancouver for a weekend back-to-back.
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