The Vancouver Canucks placed goaltender Mike McKenna on waivers Thursday, one day after acquiring him in a deal with the Ottawa Senators.

McKenna, 35, posted a 1-4-1 record with a .897 save percentage and a 3.96 GAA with the Senators this season. He served as the Canucks backup goaltender on Wednesday against the Senators.

Canucks general manager Jim Benning said after Wednesday's trade, which saw goaltender Anders Nilsson and forward Darren Archibald head to the Senators for McKenna, forward Tom Pyatt and Ottawa's sixth-round selection in the 2019 NHL Draft, that goaltending prospect Thatcher Demko would be called up in the near future. 

“One of the things that we wanted to do was make room for Thatcher and get him going,” Benning said after moving Nilsson.  “We’ve been patient with him, with his development. He’s playing really well down there (in Utica) … we just felt that the foundation for his game is set, now is time for him to move up.”

Demko, a second-round pick in 2014, has a 8-5 record with a .911 save percentage and a 2.58 GAA in 15 games with the AHL's Utica Comets this season.