It’s the beginning of September and I’m just starting to comprehend that Jack Campbell is no longer with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
It made a lot of sense why the Toronto Maple Leafs didn’t re-sign Jack Campbell this offseason.
At 30-years-old, Campbell only has 135 career starts under his belt and although he’s been good at times, he also hasn’t done anything spectacular. Sure, he was named as an NHL All-Star last year, but after getting that nod, he turned into one of the worst goalies in the league for a long stretch.
Spending $5M AAV for the next five years was a big price to pay Campbell, especially when the team decided they could get two quality (hopefully) goaltenders for basically the same price.
They traded for Matt Murray, who has two Stanley Cup rings and Ilya Samsonov, who many scouts thought was the best goalie in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. Both Murray and Samsonov haven’t lived up to expectations as of late, but a change of scenery on a great team in-front of them may be the best thing to rejuvenate their careers.
Campbell’s Presence Will Be Missed in Toronto
So, although it makes a ton of sense from a business perspective to lose Campbell, it’s still a disappointing pill to swallow for Leafs fans.
When you think of the goaltender position within Leafs history, they’ve had plenty of names that fans fell in-love with. People liked Freddie Andersen, but they seemingly LOVED Jack Campbell.
We hadn’t seen that type of affection to a goaltender since Curtis Joseph and it was shown every time he stepped on the ice, no matter what city he played in.
Even during road-game’s, you’d hear “SOUP!” chants fill the arena, like it was a home game. His presence was adored throughout every NHL stadium and it obviously hit a high-point during the playoffs last year.
It may not have ended great, but Campbell’s shut-out in Game 1 against Tampa Bay last playoffs was supposed to set the tone for the series. The fans screamed his nickname at the top of his lungs, which ultimately had him named “First Star” of the contest.
As mentioned, obviously the series didn’t go as planned for Leafs fans and there were a few goals that Campbell wished he didn’t allow, but overall, the timeline of Campbell with the Leafs was a happy one.
Campbell became a starting goaltender for the first time in his career and became a fan-favorite, while doing so. Every player seemed to fall in-love with him, and every fan rooted for him like he was their own teammate.
History shows us that it’ll be tough for Campbell to be a consistent NHL starting goaltender for the next five years, but part of me hopes it happens, except when the Oilers play the Toronto Maple Leafs.