Laurent Brossoit, two other UFA goaltenders legit options for the Maple Leafs
The Athletic's Joshua Kloke has identified Laurent Brossoit and two other veteran goaltenders as legitimate options for the Maple Leafs.
While he has a very bright future in the National Hockey League, Joseph Woll is still very green behind the ears. With just 36 regular season games under his belt and some legitimate health concerns, Woll may not quite be ready to take on the responsibility of being a full-time starter in Canada's hockey mecca.
Ilya Samsonov is also headed to unrestricted free agency, which leaves the Leafs in clear need of a goaltender, preferably with some seasoning.
In the link provided below, Kloke mentions Laurent Brossoit, Anthony Stolarz and Alex Nedeljkovic as 3 potential options for the Maple Leafs should they opt to not pony up for a bona-fide number one netminder on the trade market this summer.
Brossoit, a career backup netminder, has produced some decent results in his NHL career, having posted a .918 SV% or better in 3 of his last 4 seasons, split between the Winnipeg Jets and Vegas Golden Knights. Unfortunately, he has never played more than 24 games in a single season.
Stolarz is another name who has produced surprisingly solid numbers over the past 4 NHL seasons, putting up a .917 SV% or better in 3 of his last 4 NHL campaigns with the Anaheim Ducks and Florida Panthers. Stolarz had a .925 SV% for the Panthers this season across 27 appearances.
Nedeljkovic, unlike the other two backups, has started 35 or more games twice in his NHL career. Unfortunately, unlike Stolarz an Brossoit, Nedeljkovic hasn't had the same level of success at the NHL level in recent years. In fact, in each of his last 3 seasons, Nedeljkovic hasn't posted a season-long SV% above .902.
Obviously, the hope here is that the Leafs will pop for a true number one goaltender to help buy some additional time to allow Joseph Woll the proper time to develop, but if they were to opt to bring in one of the 3 aforementioned netminders, I'd lean more towards Stolarz than either Brossoit or Nedeljkovic.
| POLL | ||
MAI 28 | 377 ANSWERS Laurent Brossoit, two other UFA goaltenders legit options for the Maple Leafs If the Leafs swing and miss on a bona-fide starter this summer, which of Brossoit, Stolarz and Nedeljkovic would be the best fit in Toronto? | ||
| Nedeljkovic | 50 | 13.3 % |
| Brossoit | 128 | 34 % |
| Stolarz | 63 | 16.7 % |
| None of the above | 136 | 36.1 % |
| List of polls | ||
