A Rested Hildeby or a Motivated Woll: The Leafs Make the Right Call in Goal Against the Canadiens

There was some speculation over who might start for the Maple Leafs against their arch rivals, the Montreal Canadiens, tonight for their divisional clash tonight on Hockey Night in Canada.

Some viewed a well-rested Dennis Hildeby as the preferred option after some up-and-down play from Joseph Woll of late. However, the Leafs see things a little bit differently.

With a 2-2 record and allowing 3 goals or more in three of his past four starts, Joseph Woll will get the nod between the pipes Saturday against the red-hot Montreal Canadiens.

The 26-year-old has started 12 of 17 games for the Leafs since Anthony Stolarz had knee surgery in mid-December. Over that time, Woll has posted a 7-5-0 record while seeing his save percentage fluctuate from as low as .826 to as high as .970, depending on the game.

After a lopsided loss to the Carolina Hurricanes, head coach Craig Berube defended the former third-round pick and dismissed questions about his increased workload.

Although Woll's play between the pipes has been a roller-coaster since Stolarz's injury, the play of the Leafs in front of him has also been very inconsistent.

Without Stolarz, the Leafs have struggled to find the consistency they had earlier in the season, despite a six-game winning streak to begin 2025. However, Stolarz returned to the ice this past week and is expected to return to the lineup in February.

If Woll wants to play more when Stolarz returns, he will have to use his next few starts to show he can stabilize the crease despite the play of the team in front of him, which is something that Stolarz had been able to do.

Woll and the Leafs will look to ride the momentum from their overtime victory against the New Jersey Devils on Thursday into the Bell Centre on Saturday to take on a Habs team that has won five of their last six, collecting 11 of 12 points.

The Canadiens are now just one point back of the second wild card spot, so the Leafs will have their hands full in trying to slow down the Habs tonight.