The Toronto Maple Leafs have signed another amateur goaltender to serve as backup tonight, the fourth-straight game that they’ve had only one NHL-level goalie on the ice. Samuel Richard will be tonight’s amateur tryout agreement, backing up Joseph Woll against the New York Rangers.
Richard, 22, played for the University of New Brunswick this season after a three-year career in the QMJHL with the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies. He was outstanding at the USports level, posting an 18-4 record, 1.59 goals-against average, .933 save percentage.
The UNB Reds won the national championship last month, with Richard posting a shutout in the final game.
Still, that’s certainly not the same path most NHL backups take, and the continued use of amateur goaltenders at the end of this season has to be a cause for concern among the league offices.
Luckily, in this case, the game is effectively meaningless. The Maple Leafs and Rangers are locked into their playoff positions and will try to get out of tonight’s game healthy.
Ilya Samsonov, the team’s regular starter, will take another game off as he deals with some minor injuries and prepares for the playoffs.