The Leafs may have a contingency plan if Murray and Samsonov can't handle the crease duties
There are a lot of questions about the Leafs' goaltending duo for the upcoming season and, for the most part, a lot of the questions are fair. The Leafs hanging their hopes on a former back-to-back Stanley Cup winner in Matt Murray, who has long since fallen off and an unproven commodity in 25-year-old Ilya Samsonov. While that doesn't necessarily mean they're destined for failure, it doesn't exactly instill a lot of confidence since, as we all know, goalies are voodoo.
Among the many questions surrounding the Leafs' potential goaltending concerns is a very interesting query about what happens if GM Kyle Dubas' plan fails. But, according to FanSided's Editor in Leaf , if 'Plan A' falters, there may already be a 'Plan B' in the works.
Editor In Leaf has suggested that Leafs GM Kyle Dubas could pursue a deal for Winnipeg Jets goaltender and former Vezina Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck should Murray and/or Samsonov appear as though they cannot shoulder the load in Toronto.
He is cheap, he is not signed long-term, and his current team is garbage and doesn't look to be getting any better before he is an unrestricted free-agent asking for nine or ten million per season.
The Winnipeg Jets, like the Islanders, are in possession of a goalie who is going to price himself out of town before they can ice a contender around him. The obvious move is to cash in, and, should Matt Murray not pan out, look for the Toronto Maple Leafs to try and make a move in this direction.
-Editor in Leaf on the possibility of the Leafs viewing Hellebuyck as Plan B
The 29-year-old netminder is one of the most heavily-worked goaltenders in the league and has been since his sophomore season. Hellebuyck has posted a .910 SV% or better in each of his last 5 seasons and owns a collective .916 SV% across his 7-year NHL career. He also boasts a career 201-129-35 record.
My only question is that if Hellebuyck truly was Plan B, why wouldn't the Leafs have just made him Plan A?
| POLL | ||
SEPTEMBRE 6 | 715 ANSWERS The Leafs may have a contingency plan if Murray and Samsonov can't handle the crease duties Should the Leafs have just made Hellebuyck 'Plan A'?? | ||
| Yes | 582 | 81.4 % |
| No | 133 | 18.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
