Kevin Lankinen of the Vancouver Canucks. Getty
The Vancouver Canucks survived a roller coaster opening game of the 2026-27 NHL campaign, defeating the divisional rival Edmonton Oilers in a thrilling 6-5 overtime final score on Tuesday evening.
The Canucks, who built up a 5-2 lead, allowed the Oilers to storm back into the contest, only to have Paul Cotter bail them out with his second goal of the evening shortly into the overtime frame, securing the extra point in the standings.
The Canucks will be right back at it against the Oilers on Thursday evening in their home opener at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, and have officially tabbed Kevin Lankinen as their starting goaltender.
GettyKevin Lankinen of the Vancouver Canucks.
According to Canucks Insider Thomas Drance, who was on the scene earlier in the day during practice at Rogers Arena, Lankinen was the first goaltender off the ice, meaning he's on track to get the start against the Oilers later in the evening in their rematch of Tuesday's 6-5 OT thriller.
"Kevin Lankinen is the first goaltender off of the ice and is your projected Canucks starter for the home opener Thursday vs. EDM," Drance wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
On Tuesday, Lankinen made 32 saves on the 37 shots that he faced from the Oilers. He's in the midst of a five-year, $22.5 million extension.
The puck will drop at Rogers Arena just after 10:00 p.m. ET.
Canucks head coach Manny Malhotra, a former Vancouver forward who was named the club's head coach over the summer, said after the win on Tuesday that he was proud of the resilience his club showed despite losing their lead.
"The resiliency to stay with it for us was a huge factor in the game, and then guys stepping up in big ways. Lanks made some key saves, especially down the stretch there. Our kill did a job throughout the course of the game [against] obviously, elite power play and limiting them to as much as we did was good. But just the overall, obviously, the joy of winning a game takes precedence right now," Malhotra said via NHL.com.
Meanwhile, he also had praise for Lankinen, who made several key stops against the high-powered offense of the Oilers despite allowing five goals.
"He battles. He competes to stop pucks, and that's what you want out of your goalie. It gives us confidence knowing that he's going to do everything in his power to try to stop pucks. He came up with some clutch ones down the stretch, so I think just that level of play gives us confidence in front of him," Malhotra said.
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