Maple Leafs’ Hildeby Trade Has an Uncomfortable Similarity to the Tuukka Rask Deal

We’re not suggesting Dennis Hildeby is the next Tuukka Rask. What we’re suggesting is that the circumstances surrounding Hildeby’s departure from the Toronto Maple Leafs bear an uncanny resemblance to one of the most painful goaltending decisions in franchise history.

Only time will determine whether history repeats itself.

History Has a Way of Making Some Goaltending Decisions Unforgettable

When the Maple Leafs traded Tuukka Rask to the Boston Bruins in 2006, they weren’t simply giving up on a promising young goaltender. They believed they already had their goalie of the future in Justin Pogge.

At the time, that belief wasn’t unreasonable. Pogge had just helped Canada win a World Junior Championship and was widely regarded as one of hockey’s top goaltending prospects. History, however, had other plans.

Pogge appeared in just seven NHL games for Toronto before his career ended. Rask went on to become one of the league’s premier goaltenders, winning the Vezina Trophy, leading the Bruins to multiple Stanley Cup Final appearances, and spending more than a decade as Boston’s franchise netminder.

The lesson wasn’t that Toronto should have known Rask would become a star. The lesson was that projecting young goaltenders is one of the most difficult jobs in hockey.

The Hildeby Decision Follows a Familiar Pattern

Fast forward to today. John Chayka has dramatically reshaped the Maple Leafs’ goaltending depth chart.

Sergei Bobrovsky arrives to partner with Anthony Stolarz, while Artur Akhtyamov has positioned himself as the organization’s top young goaltending prospect after backstopping the Toronto Marlies to a Calder Cup championship and capturing the Jack A. Butterfield Trophy as playoff MVP.

That left Hildeby in an awkward position. His waiver exemption had expired. Keeping him would have meant carrying three NHL goaltenders or exposing him to waivers, where there was little chance he would clear. Trading him became the practical solution.

From a roster management standpoint, the decision makes perfect sense. But that’s exactly what makes the comparison to Rask so intriguing. In both cases, the Maple Leafs moved on from a talented young goaltender because they believed another prospect gave them a better long-term path.

Two decades ago, it was Justin Pogge. Today, it appears to be Artur Akhtyamov.

Was Hildeby Expendable?

It’s easy to overlook Hildeby’s development because he never established himself as a full-time NHL player. That doesn’t mean he lacked potential.

Over the past two seasons, Hildeby earned back-to-back American Hockey League Eastern Conference All-Star selections while continuing to improve his game. In limited NHL action, he also posted respectable numbers and showed flashes of becoming a reliable NHL goaltender.

At 6-foot-7, he possesses the size every organization covets, but unlike many taller goaltenders, he also moves exceptionally well. That’s the type of prospect teams are often reluctant to give up. The Maple Leafs clearly felt they could.

The Gamble Isn’t Bobrovsky—It’s Akhtyamov

Much of the attention surrounding Toronto’s offseason has focused on the acquisition of Sergei Bobrovsky. The bigger gamble may actually be the organization’s confidence in Akhtyamov. If he develops into the NHL starter the Maple Leafs believe he can become, moving Hildeby will be remembered as a smart piece of asset management.

If Hildeby blossoms elsewhere while Akhtyamov fails to reach that level, the comparisons to the Rask trade will only grow louder. That isn’t a prediction. It’s simply the reality of trading a young goaltender before his story has been written.

Only Time Reveals Whether a Gamble Pays Off

Every general manager eventually makes a decision that defines part of his legacy. For John Ferguson, Jr., one of those decisions was trading Tuukka Rask. Chayka has now made his own difficult choice by moving Hildeby.

The situations are not identical, and no one knows whether Hildeby will ever approach the career Rask enjoyed. But the similarities are impossible to ignore. The Maple Leafs once believed they had the right young goaltender and traded away another who went on to become one of the NHL’s best.

Chayka is betting that history won’t repeat itself. For Maple Leafs fans, that’s a wager worth watching for years to come.

[Note: I want to thank long-time Maple Leafs fan Stan Smith for collaborating with me on this post. Stan’s Facebook profile can be found here.]