To say that the Toronto Maple Leafs’ goaltending situation has been very underwhelming this season is an understatement. While Joseph Woll earning the starter role before sustaining an ankle injury and Martin Jones playing well in his absence, Ilya Samsonov’s time has come to an end as he has run out of chances to try and turn around his abysmal season.
Coming off his recent outing, a 6-5 overtime loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets, Samsonov was eventually put on waivers. Whether he gets picked up on waivers or not, he could use some time in the minors to find his game. His struggles have been evident all season long with weak goals against and poor outings. In his last four outings that ended in a loss, he has allowed four goals or more in those games. When the team needed a save, he didn’t come through and he hasn’t been able play at the level of being in the NHL.
As a result, the Maple Leafs have called up top goaltending prospect Dennis Hildeby. Known as the “Hildebeast”, his play as a rookie with the Toronto Marlies in the American Hockey League has earned him that opportunity. While it would’ve been better for him to continue his development, given the circumstances, the Maple Leafs are giving him that chance to see what he can do.
Hildeby’s Stellar Season
While Woll has been playing great in the NHL– before his injury– Hildeby has been turning heads in the minors as another potential top name in the crease. Ever since the Rookie Tournament in Travers City, Michigan, he has continued to get better with his play.
While the talk about top goaltending prospects revolves around names like Jesper Wallstedt, Dustin Wolf and Yaroslav Askarov, Hildeby is quickly joining that conversation. In his rookie season, he currently ranks seventh in SV% with .919 and is second with a 2.20 GAA. That alone is impressive for him to come into his first pro season in North America. As a result, he continues to get starts and make highlight reel saves. Including this quick reaction save in tight back in November.
Hildeby not only made a save with the blocker, but he was able to quickly get his glove out for the rebound opportunity and deny a for sure goal. The way that he has already assumed the starter role in his first pro season in the system for the Maple Leasf really is impressive and a testament to his development. It’s been some time since the Maple Leafs not only had one homegrown talent in net, but multiple ones. With Woll making his mark in the NHL, Hildeby is quickly doing the same continuing to impress in the AHL.
Hildeby has attributed his mental strength as a reason for his success in being so composed in net. Goalies need to have that quick reaction time but still remain calm and not panic. Which has been the exact opposite with Samsonov all season, being overaggressive with his movemnts and slow reaction time. He shows great poise in the net and when he does face a high danger situation he doesn’t panic and stays with the play. That is something that Hildeby has a major advantage over some of the other goalies trying to make it.
Past Pro Experience
A reason why Hildeby is having so much success early on in his pro career, is that while this is his first pro season in North America, it’s not his first pro season in his career. He has his time in the SHL to thank for that.
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Playing at the pro level in Sweden as an overage prospect is a big reason why the Maple Leafs were high on him when they selected him 122nd overall in the 2022 NHL Draft. He was signed weeks later by the Maple Leafs to his entry level contract.
In 2021-22, Hildeby had a 3-2-0 record with Färjestad BK, but had an outstanding .931 SV% and a 1.93 GAA. The following season, he earned more playing time, going 11-9-0 with a .918 SV% and a 2.26 GAA. A little high compared to his first stint at the pro level, but the results was evident. Given how Hildeby was already showing promise and developed quickly at a high level, the Maple Leafs definitely saw something in his game to select him.
The biggest thing that stands out in Hildeby’s game, is his athleticism and mobility in the crease. He has strong lateral movements and he’s quick to get into position successfully and take away angles for players. Given his 6-foot-7, 223 pound-frame, he’s a behemoth in the crease, covering up a lot of net and doesn’t give shooters a whole lot to work with. The combination of his size, quickness and the calm nature that he has in his game is what’s going to help make his transition to the NHL much smoother.
Right Time for a Call-Up?
Given the current situation of Woll still being out, Jones performing well as the third string goaltender and the struggles and rough outings that continue to plague Samsonov, you have to ask the question; was this the time to call-up Hildeby?
On the surface, the short answer is yes.
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He was bound to get NHL experience eventually. Given how he has continued to elevate his play and show that he can be a starter for the future, he was going to get the nod at some point. That’s what he’s working towards, so why not give him that chance as his play could be better than Samsonov’s. If he’s able to handle the pressure and be focussed, then the promise is definitely there. If he doesn’t then he can still be sent down as it’s not a long-term solution for this season.
You really don’t want to interrupt a player’s development and put a rookie goaltender with no NHL experience and half a season in the AHL into that situation. That isn’t fair for Hildeby, but when you play well, you’re going to be high on the list of players that can be promoted. It’s still tough for a young goaltender to be an answer this early on in his career as the team looks for some sort of consistency in net.
Hildeby is still young at 22. A lot of the other top goaltending prospects are either younger or older than him and are still developing as well. Head coach Sheldon Keefe even said, that they don’t want to “derail their development” and you don’t want to put that kind of pressure on him at this moment. While it’s best for him to stay the course and succeed in the minors, they really had no choice.
With Hildeby potentially getting called up, he definitely made his case to even be brought up in this conversation with his start in the AHL. He quickly became the starter for the Marlies and continues to impress with each game he starts. From his size to his composure in net, he has everything the team needs and could definitely give the Maple Leafs saves and wins more so than Samsonov at this point.
