Do the Leafs have a new starting goaltender on their hands?
Jack Campbell's struggles since before the All-Star break are no secret. The 30-year-old netminder has fallen off considerably after a red hot start to the season that saw him earn early Vezina Trophy consideration. Now, Campbell appears to have been relegated to a secondary role in Toronto and we could be looking at Petr Mrazek taking over the lion's share of the workload.
Following practice on Tuesday, Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe identified Mrazek as his starter on Wednesday when the Buds play host to the Buffalo Sabres at Scotiabank Arena. This marks the first time this season that Mrazek has gotten the nod in consecutive games.
Mrazek's tenure in Toronto got off to a rocky start after the 29-year-old suffered an injury at the beginning of the season and then a subsequent setback almost immediately after he returned to the lineup.
Credit where credit is due, youngster Joseph Woll made the most of his opportunity with the Leafs while he was up, winning 3 of his first 4 NHL starts, but Woll was never a long-term option for the Leafs this season. Not at any point.
Once Mrazek had finally returned to full health, he did manage to string together a stretch of 4 consecutive wins in January - though all but two of those games were separated by at least a week. While the Czech netminder has been wildly inconsistent this season, he has managed to post a 9-4-0 record in 13 appearances. The phrase "don't care, just win" comes to mind.
Now, is it likely that Mrazek carries the torch the rest of the way? Probably not. Campbell may not have a ton of NHL experience, but he's played well enough for long stretches to identify that he possesses a considerable amount of skill at the position. I think the chances of him finding a way out of his slump and returning to form is far more likely than the Port Huron, MI native continuing to struggle the way that he has in recent weeks.
I suspect that Soupy be the Leafs' starter come playoff time, but I also have to acknowledge the fact that a good run of games from Mrazek will make it tough for Campbell to come in and take the net back unless he's stellar in multiple starts.
For now, it appears as though Keefe is leaning more toward Mrazek as the team's 1A option in goal. Now it's up to Campbell to pick up the pieces and work his way back into that role.
| POLL | ||
1 MARS | 427 ANSWERS Do the Leafs have a new starting goaltender on their hands? How long will Mrazek remain the top option in Toronto? | ||
| 5 games or less | 203 | 47.5 % |
| 6-10 games | 102 | 23.9 % |
| 11-20 games | 36 | 8.4 % |
| He won't last a week as a #1 | 86 | 20.1 % |
| List of polls | ||
