Update on injured Leafs goaltender Ilya Samsonov, who has now missed 3 weeks of action
It's been three weeks since Leafs goaltender Ilya Samsonov suffered a knee injury against the Boston Bruins and was subsequently placed on injured reserve. Today, after weeks of waiting patiently, fans finally got somewhat of a promising update on the 25-year-old netminder.
Per Sheldon Keefe, Samsonov appears to be progressing well, taking on more and more work at practice, with his knee responding well to the ramp up in activity and hindering him less and less. Keefe has finally confirmed that Samsonov is inching his way towards a return, though he couldn't give a specific timeline. The Leafs' bench boss has admittedly not followed up with the medical team after being told that Samsonov would not be cleared on the current 4-game road trip.
Before being injured, Samsonov was emerging as the Leafs' starting goaltender, while Matt Murray was out with an adductor injury. The Russian goalie is currently sitting at 6-2-0 in the season, with a .921 SV%. Matt Murray has made quite the push in his absence, however, going 4-0-1 since returning from injury himself. Murray also holds a .921 SV%. It's a good problem to have for the Leafs.
Following tonight's game in Pittsburgh, the Leafs are set to end their road trip in Detroit on Monday. The team will play one home game on Wednesday against San Jose before going on the road again for a pair of games in Tampa and Dallas to kick off their December schedule.
| POLL | ||
NOVEMBRE 26 | 178 ANSWERS Update on injured Leafs goaltender Ilya Samsonov, who has now missed 3 weeks of action If you're Sheldon Keefe, once Samsonov is healthy and cleared to return, who would you run as your starting goaltender? | ||
| Murray | 73 | 41 % |
| Samsonov | 12 | 6.7 % |
| Alternate starts | 93 | 52.2 % |
| List of polls | ||
