Entering the 2024-25 season, the one knock on Joseph Woll was his health and whether or not he would be able to complete the campaign without too many nicks or bruises. His young career has been thwarted by injuries to date and they've come at inopportune moments like the tail end of Game 6 during last year's playoff series against Boston.
The Toronto Maple Leafs invested a lot of hope in the 26-year-old this summer with the idea he'd be the 1A to Anthony Stolarz's 1B. Unfortunately, shortly before opening night, Woll sustained a lower body injury that shifted him to the IR to start the year.
With the Leafs having started the season with 3 games in 4 days, their schedule has softened a little bit with only 2 games this week - both on home ice. Earlier today, head coach Craig Berube gave the media optimistic news regarding Woll. He is not only feeling better but was on the ice today ahead of Leafs practice, and should be joining the club for practice soon.
What that means for his status moving forward is unknown at the moment. However, with the light schedule this week, Woll has a chance to sneak a few more practices and potentially return on the weekend. If they decide to play it safe with their young netminder, they could potentially hold him out until next week.
Anthony Stolarz and Dennis Hildeby have filled in admirably in his absence so there's no real rush right now to activate Woll, who becomes eligible to come off of IR on Thursday. Once he returns, the Maple Leafs should operate with a relatively equal timeshare in goal until either Woll or Stolarz show they're capable of handling a larger load.
POLL | ||
OCTOBRE 14 | 2493 ANSWERS Maple Leafs Provide Highly Anticipated Update Regarding Injured Goalie Joseph Woll How many games does Joseph Woll start in 2024-25? | ||
10-20 | 699 | 28 % |
21-30 | 1235 | 49.5 % |
31-40 | 494 | 19.8 % |
41+ | 65 | 2.6 % |
List of polls |