Leafs appear to have made a decision on who will get the start in goal against Anaheim
Following an uncharacteristic outing for Leafs goaltender Matt Murray, who allowed 4 goals on 26 shots against the Calgary Flames on Saturday, there was a lot of chatter amongst Leafs Nation as to who should receive the start tonight against the Anaheim Ducks.
We saw Sheldon Keefe and the coaching staff go right back to Murray following an OT loss and a subpar performance against the Tampa Bay Lightning back on December 3rd and they were rewarded with a 44-save shutout against the Dallas Stars on December 6th. There has been a healthy amount of speculation over the last couple of days that the Leafs could look to do the same this week.
On the other hand, Ilya Samsonov's last game was December 8th against the Los Angeles Kings. He, too, posted a shutout, making 29 saves on 29 shots in the contest and would be deserving of an opportunity to get right back in there as well. There's also a home-game winning streak that stands a pretty good chance of being extended to 8 games if he does get the nod on Tuesday. He's a perfect 7-0-0 on home ice this season.
Well, it would appear as though the coaching staff has made its decision, if the morning skate is any indication. Per SI's David Alter, Samsonov is manning the home net at Tuesday's morning skate, which usually indicates the team's starter.
Of course, it's not a foregone conclusion just yet. Keefe spoke with the media a couple of weeks ago and revealed that he may look to withhold information on which goaltender the team plans to start moving forward. While he hasn't lived up to those claims just yet, there's certainly the possibility that he could turn around and start Murray tonight and Samsonov could get 2 of the next 3 starts that follow. We should have some more clarity following practice.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 13 | 105 ANSWERS Leafs appear to have made a decision on who will get the start in goal against Anaheim How many games will Samsonov's home-game winning streak continue? | ||
| It will end at 7 | 6 | 5.7 % |
| It will go 8 or 9 | 41 | 39 % |
| It will go 10+ home games | 58 | 55.2 % |
| List of polls | ||
