A profile photo change has fans wondering if a former Leafs goalie is returning to Toronto
The 2016-17 and 2017-18 Leafs represented something important. A turning point in the organization and a very bright future. While the team has gotten incrementally better season over season, they are still yet to break through the glass ceiling of the first round, but young players like Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and William Nylander have all grown immensely since those seasons.
There was a very important piece on that team who seldom receives praise for the job he did when called upon. I am, of course, talking about backup goaltender Curtis McElhinney. He was an unsung hero for the team, who posted back-to-back seasons of .914 SV% or better. In fact, in 2017-18, he posted a .934 SV% through 18 games. Unfortunately for Mac, the Leafs had placed him on waivers just before the following season in an attempt to send him down to the Toronto Marlies to get young Garret Sparks into some NHL action to see what they had in the kid. McElhinney was subsequently claimed by Carolina on October 2, 2018.
McElhinney played out the season with the Hurricanes and then signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2019 and earning a Cup ring for his troubles. He re-upped as the team's backup again the following season, and wouldn't you know it, the Bolts ran it back. Naturally, McElhinney was not called upon on either of the Lightning's playoff runs, with Andrei Vasilevskiy playing lights-out for Tampa.
McElhinney announced his retirement last season, but after having not played for a year and acting as Director of Coaching for MHH Goalie Club, McElhinney did something intriguing on Sunday night. He changed his Twitter profile picture to him in a Leafs goalie mask. What does it mean?
Fans are already beginning to speculate that McElhinney may be preparing to join the Leafs' revamped goalie department. It's unclear at this point whether the photo change was hinting at something or whether it was a simply photo change. McElhinney is a London, Ontario native after all. Maybe it's just a case of a Leafs fan being a Leafs fan?
If McElhinney is preparing to return to the organization in an off-ice capacity, it wouldn't be the first time the Leafs hired a former veteran. Jason Spezza and Rich Clune are both still with the organization after hanging up their skates this summer. Perhaps we'll see Mac return to the front office. If we do, he'll be a welcome addition to the team.
| POLL | ||
AOUT 29 | 971 ANSWERS A profile photo change has fans wondering if a former Leafs goalie is returning to Toronto Would you like to see former Leafs goaltender Curtis McElhinney join the new goaltending department in Toronto? | ||
| Yes | 689 | 71 % |
| No | 103 | 10.6 % |
| Don't care, just win | 179 | 18.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
