Despite recently engaging in preliminary discussions about a role with the Vancouver Canucks, veteran goaltender Antti Raanta appears to be headed back overseas.
Raanta, 35, looked to be a potential fit for the Canucks as they continue to navigate the uncertain reality of Thatcher Demko’s recovery from the knee injury he sustained during the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
It remains unclear whether Demko will be available for the Canucks as they kick off their 2024-25 regular season slate against the Calgary Flames on October 9, but it now appears certain that Raanta won’t be part of the equation.
In a recent interview with Finnish outlet Ilta-Sanomat, Raanta confirmed that his National Hockey League tenure is over. The 6′, 195-pound netminder added that he intends to spend more time with his family while playing closer to home to conclude his career.
“At the end of the season and in the summer, I thought about all sorts of things, but as the summer progressed and my body felt good, Europe started to attract me more,” Raanta said. “I played 11 years in the NHL. Now is a good time to return to Europe with my family,” he said. “Every other day, the wife sees on Instagram, when the wife of someone playing in Switzerland has updated pictures from there, and how great it looks there.”
Raanta made his NHL debut with the Chicago Blackhawks in the 2013-14 season and won the Stanley Cup the following year as the team’s third-string goaltender behind Corey Crawford. The Finnish netminder also played for the New York Rangers, Arizona Coyotes, and Carolina Hurricanes over his 11-season NHL career, posting a 139-80-29 record, 20 shutouts, and a .915 save percentage in 275 games.
With Demko injured, the Canucks’ interest in Raanta was on the basis of needing a potential fill-in for a few games to start the season, with a demotion to the AHL’s Abbotsford Canucks seemingly inevitable once their starter returned to full health. At his age, Raanta said he had little interest in that type of role.
“The role of second- or third-stringer and possibly playing in the AHL was on offer,” Raanta said, noting that he had a Zoom call with Canucks GM Patrik Allvin and goaltending coach Marko Torenius to discuss the situation. ““I turned it down right away and announced that I’ve kind of made up my mind that I won’t be going there anymore.”
The Canucks have also been linked in recent weeks with fellow Finnish goaltender Kevin Lankinen, who, at 29, is closer to the prime of his career than Raanta is. But with just over three weeks remaining until their 2024-25 season opener, the Canucks have yet to officially add another name to a goaltending stable that also includes Arturs Silovs and Jiri Patera.
