The Toronto Maple Leafs lost some of their goaltending depth when Aaron Dell was claimed off waivers earlier this season, and now the position group will be tested even further. Jack Campbell will be out “weeks” with a leg injury according to head coach Sheldon Keefe, who spoke to reporters including Kristen Shilton of TSN before tonight’s matchup against the Calgary Flames. That means Michael Hutchinson is once again the team’s backup, while Joseph Woll has been recalled to the taxi squad.
Despite winning five of their first seven games and sitting tied for first place in the North Division, the Maple Leafs will shake up the lineup tonight with several changes. Travis Dermott, Jason Spezza, and Alexander Barabanov are all expected to come out in favor of Mikko Lehtonen, Joey Anderson, and Travis Boyd, the latter two getting their first game action of the season. Toronto has been outscored at even-strength this season and is looking to change that, though much of the responsibility will still fall to the likes of Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, John Tavares, and William Nylander.
Campbell seemed to suffer the injury late in Monday’s game, just before the Matthew Tkachuk incident that incensed so many Maple Leafs fans. The 29-year-old had been oh-so-good for Toronto since arriving last season, posting a .917 save percentage in eight appearances. That’s not necessarily out of character, even if Campbell hasn’t quite lived up to the 11th-overall pick that the Dallas Stars used on him in 2010. Over 66 NHL games, he now has a .916 save percentage and was likely on his way to earning more playing time from the Maple Leafs.
Hutchinson meanwhile flamed out in Toronto a year ago, but managed to get his career back on track with the Colorado Avalanche when he was forced into action in the postseason bubble. In four appearances the journeyman netminder had a .910, leading to the Maple Leafs bringing him back as the fourth-string option this offseason. That four has turned into a two in the span of a week, meaning Frederik Andersen will need to carry the net for the next while.
Fuck
Hutchinson on the bench is a terrifying thought. I hope Andersen’s good to play every single game until Campbell returns.
Walt Jr. #1 strikes again!
@Cito’s Mustache – You can rest easy, Sheldon’s pumping Hutch’s tires now!
good thing they have Aaron Dell
Yikes
Stars took Capmbell at #11, not Kings.
Err, of course they did. It’s fixed.
Ouch
I wonder how much staying in the game after the injury occurred, contributed to the length of the rehab. I still am unsure why he stayed or was left in the game, even with only a few minutes left.
That is a point I couldn’t understand either (I’m not a leaf fan) but why as a coaching staff would you leave a goaltender in after he showed he was hurt??
Is Curtis McElhinney still available?!?!
No but Garret Sparks is
I’m really a bit concerned about the future at G for the Leafs. Woll and Scott seem to be the heir apparent, but those two hardly seem that they will be ready within a year or two. Who starts for the Leafs next year? Will Andersen resign at a similar salary or will he get more on the open market?
^ How much can Toronto afford to keep him? They are already shedding salary at breakneck speeds. They need a low-cost solution in the meantime. Anderson leaves, Raanta or Mrazek for $4mil sounds about right…problem is Raanta misses 50% of the season….
I dunno. Sorry Left fans
I think the idea was to see a 60/40 split this year between FA and JC and see if Campbell is the near term answer so that one of Scott or Will back him up next year. That idea however may be tough now as he will likely see a normal workload and not an increased workload as had been likely planned.
He’s never started more than 26 games in a season, which was last year. I think he would be okay and maybe even thrive if given an opportunity to be the full time starter, but he’s already had one knee surgery for a meniscus tear. I’m not sure if it is the same knee that’s hurt now, but that would be a concerning pattern.