Canucks goalie Kevin Lankinen agreed to a 5-year contract extension

VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Vancouver Canucks goalie Kevin Lankinen agreed to a five-year contract extension Friday with an average annual value of $4.5 million.

After signing a one-year, $875,000 deal Sept. 21 as a free agent, Lankinen has already set career highs with 19 victories and four shutouts. The 29-year-old Finn is 19-8-7 with a 2.53 goals-against average and a .905 save percentage in 34 games. He also became the first goalie in NHL history to start a season 10-0-0 on the road.

“Obviously, a good reward for all the hard work I kind of put in ever since I started playing hockey when I was 3 years old,” said Lankinen, who played for Finland in the 4 Nations Face-Off. “I’m really grateful for the commitment and the trust from the management, just to sign and how they kind of put faith in me not just for this year but the years to come.”

Lankinen spent the previous two seasons with Nashville backing up Juuse Saros. Vancouver signed Lankinen as a backup tor Thatcher Demko, who missed training camp and the beginning of the season with a knee injury, then sat out with back spasms.