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The Toronto Maple Leafs begin a five-game homestand at home against the Vegas Golden Knights on Tuesday as one of the hottest teams in the NHL, winning their seventh game in a row on Saturday against the Colorado Avalanche. The 4-3 victory was courtesy of a hat trick by Tyler Bertuzzi and a fine overall effort against a Stanley Cup contender.
The Leafs got some good news on Monday, as the club announced the recall of goalie Joseph Woll from an American Hockey League conditioning stint. The 25-year-old has been out since December 7 with a high-ankle sprain and played well in a rehab start for the Toronto Marlies, making 36 saves in a 4-1 victory over Laval.
“Today was an important day, just to get him back with the NHL guys and see where he’s at,” Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe said after practice on Monday. “He looks good, he says he feels good, but since the practice has ended, I haven’t had a chance to talk to the medical team about what’s next.”
Keefe indicated that he would not have any issues carrying three goaltenders and that looks to be what the Leafs will do since Martin Jones would require going through waivers to return to the AHL. As for when Woll will get back in the lineup, it sounds if the club will let him gradually get up to speed, which means taking advantage of being at home and having practice in between games over the next week.
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Mitch Marner earned the NHL’s second Star of the Week on Monday. The Leafs winger had 10 points (1 goal, 9 assists) in four games, including two points against the Avs on Saturday. Marner has 72 points (23 goals, 49 assists) this season, six points behind William Nylander for the club lead.
The narrative coming off of the Leafs sweep of their four-game Western swing and seven-game winning streak is that the club is putting pressure on GM Brad Treliving to make a move before the March 8th trade deadline. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman indicated on the 32 Thoughts podcast that Treliving is focused on adding a right-handed blueliner (likely to partner with Morgan Rielly), as Toronto appears to have a pair of solid tandems with TJ Brodie – Timothy Liljegren, and Jake McCabe and Simon Benoit.
The chatter about Chris Tanev has been constant going back to before the season began, but it does not appear likely that the Leafs will pay the price that Calgary is looking for (a 2024 first-round pick) for a rental defenseman that Toronto might be able to sign without giving up anything this summer.
Veteran righties such as former Leaf Ilya Lyubushkin, Arizona’s Matt Dumba, or Buffalo’s Erik Johnson would cost a significantly lower price and could be the direction that the Leafs go.
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