Toronto Maple Leafs: 3 Goalies Who Could Replace Matt Murray

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It’s no secret that the Toronto Maple Leafs have a goaltending issue.

Matt Murray and Ilya Samsonov were both signed to be a tandem for the Toronto Maple Leafs this season, but now that Murray is hurt, it’s all on Samsonov’s shoulders.

As much as we never like to predict injuries or hope for players to falter, Murray getting hurt was one of the biggest locks of the season. Nobody expected it to happen during morning-skate of his second game, but here we are.

Murray is currently on long-term injured reserve and should be back in a month or so, but what if he’s not? What if his body can’t take the wear-and-tear of an 82-game NHL season anymore? It’s definitely possible because health has been a huge concern for the 28-year-old.

Samsonov looks good during the early part of the campaign, but he’s never played more than 44 games in a season. If he’s looked upon to play 50-60 games, he may run out of gas by the start of the playoffs, where you’ll need him the most.

A healthy (and good) Murray is vitally important to the success of the Leafs season, but if he’s unable to play at a high-level when (or if) he returns, then the Leafs should look elsewhere for a goaltender.

Trading for a goaltender is never easy, but it’s possible as some other teams look to tank and rebuild.

As such, here are three goaltenders the Toronto Maple Leafs could trade for this year:

SUNRISE, FL – APRIL 15: Goaltender Connor Hellebuyck #37 of the Winnipeg Jets . (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images) /

No. 1: Connor Hellebuyck

Are the Winnipeg Jets any good?

They have a ton of talent but it feels like they missed their window to win and there’s a lot of disfunction there.

Their coach left in the middle of the season last year, they stripped the “C” off thier captain’s chest and Mark Scheifele has been cryptic about leaving. On paper they have a lot of good pieces, but putting it all together seems unlikely.

With that being said, if the team wanted to rebuild, they could do a tear-down pretty quick with a Scheifele and Hellebuyck trade.

Trading a former Vezina Trophy winning goaltender is never an easy decision, but if the team wants to tank, that’s a good place to start.

At $6.16M for the next two years, Hellebuyck is as desireable as they come and if Toronto found a way to trade for him, they would be the Stanley Cup favorites.

If the Toronto Maple Leafs want to put themselves in the best position to succeed, they need to do something crazy and trade for someone of Hellebuyck’s stature.

I know this is unlikely, but if Winnipeg starts to fall in the standings, Toronto needs to make the call and try to make this happen.

ELMONT, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 18: Semyon Varlamov #40 of the New York Islanders skates against the San Jose Sharks at UBS Arena on October 18, 2022 in Elmont, New York. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

No. 2: Semyon Varlamov

The New York Islanders have two decent goalies on their roster right now in Ilya Sorokin and Semyon Varlamov. However, since Sorokin is only 27-years-old compared to Varlamov’s 34-years, the older netminder seems like the more likely choice to be traded.

Varlamov has had a very good career and has shown he can be a legitimate starting goalie in this league. He’s also shown he can do it in the playoffs, as he was a vital piece to the Islanders making it to back-to-back Eastern Conference Finals.

As of right now, I’d rather have Varlamov over Murray, based on his longevity. Murray’s way too much of an injury risk, while Varlamov has been a perfect tandem netminder with Sorokin over the past few years.

Not only that, but Varlamov could be a really good mentor to Samsonov, who’s another Russian goaltender.

It’s possible that the New York Islanders contend for a playoff spot this year, but I think it’s much more likely they miss. As such, there’s no reason to believe why Varlamov wouldn’t be available for them via trade soon.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – MAY 08: Jonathan Quick #32 of the Los Angeles Kings (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /

No. 3: Jonathan Quick

The LA Kings are another team that will be on the verge of a playoff spot this year but could be open to a trade if Cal Petersen becomes the starting goalie.

Petersen is 28-years-old, while Quick is 36-years-old, so the Kings may be interested in giving the youngster the reigns. The former Conn Smythe winning goalie isn’t the same player he was during the Kings’ Stanley Cup run’s but he would be pretty good insurance for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

At $5.8M AAV, on his last year of a contract, the Kings could trade Quick for an asset and then re-sign him in the offseason if they really wanted to. If the team is going to miss the playoffs, they could give Quick an opportunity with a contender, but still give him the option to return if he’s open to it.

Both Quick and Murray have two Stanley Cup rings, but Quick is more reliable, even at his older age. His stats have continued to be pretty good and he’d be a goalie that every player in the dressing room would respect.

Next. Leafs Top 10 Prospects. dark

In a Game 7 scenario, would you rather go with Murray, Samsanov or Quick? In a do-or-die game, you’re going with Quick every day, so that’s the only question you need to ask yourself if you’re looking at trading for him.

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