Insider drops an absolute bombshell regarding Maple Leafs trade plans
The Toronto Maple Leafs will be without goaltender Joseph Woll for, presumably, at least another month as he recovers from a high-ankle sprain suffered December 9th against the Ottawa Senators. In the meantime, the Leafs were hoping that Ilya Samsonov and Martin Jones would be able to stabilize the situation net. While Jones has certainly done that, Samsonov, on the other hand, has not, going 1-1-3 over his last five games.
Samsonov has admitted publicly that he needs to get over the mental hurdles he is currently dealing with and the Leafs have been supportive of him - particularly Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe. The players and coaching staff may be supporting him, but Leafs GM Brad Treliving has to do what's best for the team, even if that means making a trade.
During the second intermission of the game last night against the Columbus Blue Jackets, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman revealed that Treliving is not only in the market for a defenseman, he has also begun to look at goaltending options.
Friedman mentioned that the Leafs are doing their due diligence, but are hoping that Samsonov can regain his form and reset over the Christmas break. He also noted that teams with a surplus of goalies are asking for a king's ransom because they know how many teams are out there trying to add at the position.
Internally, the Leafs have the option to recall Dennis Hildeby, their 2022 fourth-round draft pick, who has been excellent in his first pro season in North America. Friedman believes that won't happen, even though he has been playing very well, posting a 2.08 GAA and .921 save percentage across 13 games for the Marlies. He simply doesn't think that it's the right move for Hildeby's overall development.
With Friedman's comments last night, it would seem that Woll may be out longer than initially thought. That would explain why the Leafs are looking at making a change in net. It will be interesting to see how long the Leafs wait for Samsonov to hopefully regain last season's form before making some sort of move.
| POLL | ||
24 DECEMBRE | 993 ANSWERS Insider drops an absolute bombshell regarding Maple Leafs trade plans Do you think the Leafs should trade for a goalie? | ||
| Yes | 682 | 68.7 % |
| No | 311 | 31.3 % |
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