During the 2023 offseason, the Toronto Maple Leafs signed goaltender Ilya Samsonov on for one more year after arbitration awarded him a one-year, $3.55 million contract.
After a stellar 2022-23 season in which Samsonov posted an impressive 27-10-5 record with a 2.33 GAA and .919 save percentage in leading the Toronto Maple Leafs finally past the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs, it was expected that he would be the starter in net for the team in the 2023-24 season.
Rookie Joseph Woll also played well last season in his brief stint with the Leafs, but with his inexperience, he was assumed the backup role to start the season.
However, seven games now into the new NHL season, a potential controversy appears to be brewing in the Leafs net.
Is There a Goalie Controversy in Toronto Maple Leafs Net?
Samsonov already had a sub-par showing during the preseason, when he looked shaky in most of his outings leading up to the season opener.
That shakiness has ended up carrying right into the regular season, as in four games so far this season, Samsonov has posted a woeful 4.34 GAA along with a .831 save percentage.
He certainly had been fortunate enough to be still holding a 2-1 winning record, as his game appeared to be off other than his one performance against the Florida Panthers in which he looked like his best, but ended up getting the loss. (All stats from hockeydb.com)
On the other hand, Woll has been phenomenal ever since taking over the crease from Samsonov in a game against the Tampa Bay Lightning in which he helped the Leafs come back to win in overtime by holding the Lightning scoreless the rest of the way.
But it wasn’t just the way he saved the game for the Toronto Maple Leafs, it was also his confidence and positioning in net that has convinced both the team and the fanbase that he deserves to be the starter right now.
For the season, Woll is currently 3-1 with a stellar 1.33 GAA and .961 save percentage and riding a three-game winning streak.
In a way, it kind of resembles the situation the Oilers encountered last season when Jack Campbell supposedly was to be their starter with rookie Stuart Skinner serving as his backup.
Ultimately in the end, Skinner took over the starting reigns over the course of the season and relegated the higher paid and experienced Campbell to a backup role. Could the same situation be happening again in Leafs land?
We will soon find out, as Samsonov is prepared to get the start against the Nashville Predators on Saturday. It will probably be one of the most important starts to his 2023-24 NHL season as his starting role could be on the line based on his showing in the game.
Hopefully Samsonov has a nice bounce back game, creating even bigger competition between the two goalies, because by doing so, it could potentially make both of them strive to be even better, thus creating a solid two-headed monster for the Leafs in net for the rest of the season.