Doable- yes, advisable -maybe, ideal- no.
There still needs to be some type of mechanical filtration or the pump will be sucking up particles/critters and probably have a much shorter lifespan than normal.
Once you add mechanical filtration via sponge, pad, or anything, you now have to do disassemble the entire filter to keep it clean which is the downfall of canister filtration.
The pump failure that is possible is made worse by the fact that most canister pumps are proprietary and parts are not readily available for most of them. This leaves you with a pile of decaying live rock in your canister that you now have to find a way to keep alive until the repair to be made.
Those are just my thoughts see what others chime in with generally canisters are frowned upon but I've had some success over the years using them so I won't poo poo them completely.