After Recent Struggles, Samsonov’s Days With Maple Leafs Are Done

There’s only so much patience an NHL team can have with a struggling player. In a league where playoff appearances can be decided by a single standings point, there’s next-to-no-room-for-error for NHLers. And Sunday, we saw the Toronto Maple Leafs run out of patience with veteran goaltender Ilya Samsonov, who was placed on waivers by the team and likely has played his final game in a Leafs uniform.

We all have seen Samsonov looking lost this season. In 15 games, Samsonov has a 5-2-0 record, and that’s not all that bad. But it’s his individual stats and the eye test that have sunk Samsonov’s boat: he’s got a terrible 3.94 goals-against average and .862 save percentage. There’s no defending those types of numbers, and Samsonov’s most recent appearance – Friday night in a 6-5 loss to Columbus when he allowed six goals on 20 shots – sealed his fate with the organization. The 26-year-old Russian had a major case of the yips, and Leafs GM Brad Treliving clearly has had enough of him.

Samsonov will now likely be assigned to the American League’s Toronto Marlies, and the Leafs will probably call up youngster Dennis Hildeby to form a tandem with veteran Martin Jones until injured rookie Joseph Woll returns from injury. When Woll is back, it will likely be Jones serving as Woll’s understudy, and Hildeby will return to the AHL. But it’s next to impossible to imagine Samsonov will ever get another shot with Toronto at the NHL level. He’s just not good enough at the moment, and the Leafs can’t afford to take another chance on him.

Samsonov will be on the open market this summer when he becomes an unrestricted free agent. Some team – San Jose? Chicago? – will likely sign him to a low-dollar, short-term deal, but it won’t be the Buds, that’s for sure.

The Leafs have a long and unfortunate history of eating up and spitting out goalies. From Justin Pogge to Jack Campbell to Vesa Toskala to Jonathan Bernier to James Reimer, there’s no shortage of netminders who’ve withered under the spotlight in Toronto, and now Samsonov will be added to that list. He hasn’t always been helped by the Leafs’ frequently-porous defense, but his recent woes can’t be laid at the feet of anyone but himself. He’s been so far out of position on so many opponents’ goals that there’s no defending him anymore. He may be able to regain his best form with the Marlies, but Treliving is more likely to completely sever ties with him in a trade.

If Treliving can convince the Sharks to take Samsonov in a deal that brings veteran Kaapo Kahkonen, the Leafs could improve their overall depth, with Woll in the No. 1 position and Kahkonen and Jones battling for the understudy role. Treliving may have to include a decent draft pick in any trade for another goalie, but that’s the cost of doing business, and the alternative – keeping the status quo – is not really an alternative at all.

We’re not here to crap all over Samsonov as a person. By all accounts, he’s a jovial guy who is liked by his teammates. But the NHL is a zero-sum league, and Samsonov has played his way into the AHL. There’s no soft-pedaling it – he’s a competitive sinkhole in net right now, and Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe can’t keep trotting Samsonov out every other game and hoping for the best. That time of optimism is over.

Samsonov may yet salvage his career in the NHL, but that’ll have to come with a different franchise. His time in Toronto is done, and he really can’t blame anyone but the guy in his mirror.