During the 1970 NHL Expansion Draft, Maki was claimed by the Vancouver Canucks 24th overall. He became a star with team and was one of the Canucks leading scorers in his 2 full seasons with them. Maki's career was cut short when he found out that he was diagnosed with brain cancer in December 1972. He died from the cancer on May 12, 1974, he was only 29. His jersey number #11 was retired by the Canucks until Mark Messier who wore the number during his time with the Edmonton Oilers and New York Rangers played for them. 