Who Will be the Toronto Maple Leafs New Backup Goalie?
The Toronto Maple Leafs enter the 2019-20 season with yet another backup goalie conundrum, this time with two netminders with considerable experience.
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: the Toronto Maple Leafs are nearing the upcoming season with an unsolved mystery of who will be the team’s backup goalie. It seems that this enigma continues to plague the team each year as of late with no clear long-term solution in sight.
Prior to the 2016-17 season, that question appeared to have been solved with the arrival of Jhonas Enroth (remember him?). However, it quickly dissipated as he was traded away just weeks into the season, which eventually led to the team acquiring Curtis McElhinney off waivers. He was a fine addition but could never convince Mike Babcock to give him more starts in an attempt to ease Frederik Andersen’s workload.
This issue continued prior to the start of last season in which the Leafs had three (!) options vying for the role in McElhinney, Calvin Pickard, and Garret Sparks. The latter of the three ended up winning the role but with the benefit of hindsight, Sparks couldn’t make it work as the backup. Not only did the Leafs have to trade for yet another option mid-season in Michael Hutchinson, but Sparks was banished by the team prior to the playoffs and then traded this summer.
So as the new season approaches, the Leafs will have to endure this dilemma once again. This time, the primary candidates for the gig appear to be Hutchinson and Michal Neuvirth, who was signed to a PTO back in July. There are other options currently in the system such as Kasimir Kaskisuo, Ian Scott, and Joseph Woll that are currently less likely to land the role but are worth bringing up.
Without further delay, let’s compare the aforementioned netminders to determine who is the most likely to emerge as the Leafs backup goalie in 2019-20.
TORONTO, ON – JANUARY 7: Michael Hutchinson #30 of the Toronto Maple Leafs during warm up before a game against the Nashville Predators at the Scotiabank Arena on January 7, 2019 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Kevin Sousa/NHLI via Getty Images)
Michael Hutchinson
Hutchinson spent significant time with the Leafs last season due in part with nagging injuries at the goalie position and when Sparks was suspended by the team prior to the playoffs. So of all of the goalies in the conversation, Hutchinson has the most recent track with Babcock and one he would be the most familiar with.
In his brief stint, he registered a .900 SV%, a 2.87 GAA, a 14.06 xGA, and a .800 HDSV% at even strength. He also registered a 2-3 record and a shutout (as per HockeyDB), all in an effort to keep the team afloat during its most vulnerable time of the regular season.
Photo from HockeyViz.com
While his numbers weren’t impressive, this is indicative of the fact that his presence on the team wasn’t to become the Leafs backup. When the Leafs acquired Hutchinson back in December, it was done primarily to help the Marlies find a consistent goalie keep their season alive.
It’s safe to say the move worked as he excelled to the tune of a .910 SV%, a 2.70 GAA, a 14-7-1 record, and 2 shutouts to help propel the team into the postseason. While he wasn’t the goalie responsible for carrying the team to the third round (that honour goes to Kaskisuo), it cannot be ignored how critical the Hutchinson trade was for the Marlies.
So does this mean he has the backup position locked up? Not exactly, largely due to the fact that he has bounced between the NHL and AHL for the past two years. The last time he played more than 10 games was with the Winnipeg Jets in 2016-17 and his numbers that year were unimpressive, to say the least.
What he does have going for him is that he’s under contract for the upcoming campaign so he appears to be in both Babcock and Kyle Dubas’ corner somewhat. He also has a track record of being a reliable backup goalie with the Jets in the past.
All things considered, Hutchinson has a good chance of landing the gig but will likely fall into the same category of McElhinney of being used sparingly which will seemingly not alter Andersen’s workload that much.
Toronto Maple Leafs – Michal Neuvirth (Photo by Scott Audette/NHLI via Getty Images)
Michal Neuvirth
Unlike Hutchinson who is under team control for the year, Neuvirth is on a PTO and his placement on the Leafs is far from a sure thing. He is attempting to get his career back on track after a recent streak of injuries limiting his usage with the Flyers the past few seasons.
This past season was especially tough for him as he was limited to just 7 games due to a nagging lower-body injury, which partially explains why he was signed to a PTO in the first place. In that time, he recorded a .865 SV%, a 3.83 GAA, a 9.86 xGA, a .735 HDSV%, and a .167 QS% at even strength. These numbers are, of course, unimpressive, but they make sense given the aforementioned injuries he was suffering from.
Photo from HockeyViz.com
What makes Neuvirth such a compelling target isn’t what he did last season, but more so on his previous track record of being a dependable NHL goalie.
The last time he was fully healthy was the 2015-16 season in which he recorded a .924 SV%, a 2.27 GAA, an 18-8-4 record, 3 SOs, and an 8.31 GSAA to help guide the Philidelphia Flyers to the playoffs. Neuvirth did a superb job as the team’s backup and the Flyers were a stout team in front of him as a result. Unfortunately for him, the time since has been one significant injury after another, robbing him of what should be his prime.
If Neuvirth wins the spot at training camp and is able to stay healthy, he may become the Leafs long-awaited goalie that would help ease Andersen’s usage in a significant manner. That is, however, a big “if” so his placement on the team is far from a guarantee.
ROCHESTSER, NY – APRIL 19: Toronto Marlies Kasimir Kaskisuo (30) makes a save during game 1 of the Calder Cup Playoffs between Toronto Marlies and the Rochester Americans on April 19, 2019 at Blue Cross Arena in Rochester, NY. (Photo by Jerome Davis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images).
The Longshots
While the Toronto Maple Leafs appear the backup goalie conundrum down to the two previously mentioned netminders, the following three could make managements decision more difficult.
Kaskisuo had an inconsistent 2018-19 campaign with the Marlies, posting a 12-14-1 record, a .896 SV%, a 3.07 GAA, and 4 SOs as per HockeyDB. His irreconcilable play was a factor in why the Leafs traded for Hutchinson in the first place.
It was in the playoffs where he turned around his fortunes, registering an impressive .927 SV%, 2.14 GAA, and a 9-3 record. His strong playoff performance helped propel the Marlies to the third round and pushed the Charlotte Checkers, who went on to win the Calder Cup, to six games.
On the other end of the spectrum, Scott was nothing short of sensation for the Prince Albert Raiders this past season. As per Sports Forecaster, he recorded an eye-popping SV% of .932 SV%, a 1.83 GAA, 8 SOs, and a 38-8-3 record. He went on to propel the Raiders to a WHL championship, an appearance in the 2019 Memorial Cup, won WHL Playoff MVP, was named the CHL’s Goalie of the Year, and even scored a goal. He is only 20-years-old though, so will likely need more seasoning before he gets a legitimate shot at the NHL.
Finally, Woll is another Leafs goalie prospect who has been making strides in his development since being drafted by the team. He registered a .919 SV%, a 2.41 GAA, 3 SOs, and a 13-21-3 record with Boston College this past season as per Sports Forecaster. While his numbers have remained fairly stable throughout his time in college, it was good enough to land him an ELC with the Leafs in May. Like Scott, he too will need more time to develop before landing a gig with the Leafs.
The Leafs also have another young goalie in Zachary Bouthillier who, you guessed it, will need some time to grow before he can become a viable option for the position.
So Who will Land the Role?
Based on all of the evidence, it’s clear that both Hutchinson and Neuvirth are the favourites at this time to land the role of the Leafs backup goaltender. Who ends up winning the battle for the coveted position will depend on what the teams’ needs are for this coming season.
If they want to stick with what has worked in the regular season, as in having a backup used sparingly on back-to-back nights, then Hutchinson will most likely get the gig. The caveat, however, is that the same problem of Andersen being overworked will likely reemerge, which could yet again impact the team’s outlook come playoff time.
Neuvirth could also fill that role but he can also be a more reliable option to fill in if the team experiences injuries at the position or Andersen struggles at some point. It might potentially result in Neuvirth playing in nearly 30 games, which would be extremely helpful in ensuring Andersen has enough left in the tank when the games matter most.
If I were to choose between the two options right now, I would lean towards Neuvirth. It’s primarily because of the potential stability in the crease he could provide and may subsequently contribute positively to Andersen’s workload. This does all depend on his health and his performance in the pre-season, which is why I also won’t be surprised if Hutchinson ends up winning it.
And if neither option works out, the other goalies in the Leafs system don’t appear ready to make the jump just yet. Meaning a trade or signing for a cheap option would be the next avenue explored.
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(All stats unless otherwise noted are from Hockey-Reference.com and Natural Stat Trick).
The upcoming training camp will bring forth yet another dilemma over who will be the Leafs backup goalie for the coming season. With the two options in mind, we can only hope this is the last time for a while this decision will need to be made.