The club recalled its struggling top-paid goaltender ahead of Wednesday’s practice, returning prospect Dennis Hildeby to the AHL Marlies before he had a chance to taste NHL action.
Samsonov, who maintained a stall in the Leafs dressing room during his demotion, practised with the big club for the first time since he gave up six goals on 21 shots during a disastrous 6-5 collapse to the Columbus Blue Jackets in late December.
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The move is less about getting Samsonov back into the NHL than it is about squeezing Hildeby into some games.
Hildeby’s camp and the Maple Leafs organization have prioritized the gigantic goalie’s 2023-24 as a development year. And with veteran Martin Jones slated to make a sixth consecutive start Thursday on Long Island, Hildeby’s groove of game action has been interrupted so he could sit on the bench and watch Jones do his thing.
“That’s really what it’s about,” coach Sheldon Keefe told reporters Wednesday, before jetting to New York. “But at the same time, it gives us a chance to assess Ilya and give him an opportunity to get back with the group.
“You want to see him play with confidence in the net. Right now, all we have to go off are his practices. You want to see him practise well and have good habits, and you want to see him have life about him and confidence. We’ll reassess after Friday.”
‘Great to see him back out there’: Maple Leafs’ Tavares on Samsonov
And with Joseph Woll (high ankle sprain) still weeks from recovery, and the trade market thin on reasonable alternatives, the organization is doing its best to buy time for Woll (now skating solo) and manage the situation on the fly.
“It’s all unpredictable,” Keefe said recently.
The coach was speaking generally to the state of NHL goaltending, but the sentiment applies to where, exactly, the Leafs crease goes from here.
To free up Hildeby, Samsonov will back up Jones against the Islanders.
Earlier this week, GM Brad Treliving did not outline a plan for Samsonov, who had been working on his mental and technical game with development staff for a week before participating in one Marlies practice (Tuesday) and now one with the Leafs.
The team declined to make Samsonov available to reporters following practice, protecting him from professional game action and the media.
“Part of what he’s going through is physical, but more of it is mental,” Keefe said. “You guys are fine people. But when you’re going through something, [answering questions] doesn’t help. It hurts.”
Toronto is staring at a weekend back-to-back versus Colorado and Detroit that extends to a three-in-four-nights set when you include Tuesday’s challenge in Edmonton against Connor McDavid’s red-hot Oilers.
Thank goodness for Jones, earning every penny of his $875,000 salary, but he’ll need a breath.
“I’m sure it’s challenging playing all these games, but he’s doing a great job,” Morgan Rielly said. “Jonesy’s been great. Had a great [California] trip for us. It’s not easy playing back-to-backs, but you didn’t hear a peep out of him. He just worked and played well.
“He’s just doing his thing.”
Between starts, Jones celebrated his 34th birthday Wednesday with a hockey practice.
His thing is playing goalie for the Maple Leafs. At some point, Jones will need support doing his thing.
Knies should be OK after practice scare
With Wednesday’s news of Connor Bedard undergoing jaw surgery and being sidelined for as long as eight weeks, diehard members of Leafs Nation wondered if Matthew Knies may have an outside shot at entering the Calder Trophy conversation.
Toronto’s prized rookie has carved out a niche on the club’s top line alongside Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner and has comported himself well in a forechecking and playmaking role with the superstars.
Well, Knies himself suffered an injury scare Wednesday and needed help off the ice from teammates after going down during a drill.
Maple Leafs’ Knies helped off ice after sustaining apparent injury at practice
Matthews told reporters he saw his linemate after the skate and that the injury appeared minor.
Knies will travel with the club to Long Island, an optimistic Keefe assured, and may well be available to suit up against the Islanders.
Maple Leafs’ Keefe: Knies ‘looks good,’ not ruled out of game vs. Islanders
One-Timers: Despite ripping a goal in his last-minute return to the lineup during Tuesday’s 7-1 rout of the San Jose Sharks, Nick Robertson is expected to be a healthy scratch Thursday on Long Island as Noah Gregor recovers from illness. Keefe on Robertson: “I don’t think he’s fully separated himself from the pack.”… That pack features Pontus Holmberg, one of Mitch Marner’s favourite players in the NHL. The Swede scored a beautiful one-handed goal against the Sharks and is endearing himself to the team by playing centre, left wing and right wing this season, bouncing around the bottom six. “You can do a lot with that as a coach,” Keefe said…. Mark Giordano missed Wednesday’s practice and took a recovery day instead. Expect him to play Thursday…. Marlies Hildeby and Alex Steeves were named to the AHL all-star game in San Jose.
Maple Leafs projected lines Thursday at New York Islanders
VANCOUVER – The Vancouver Canucks announced Tuesday that defenceman Alex Edler will sign a one-day contract in order to officially retire as a member of the NHL team.
The signing will be part of a celebration of Edler’s career held Oct. 11 when the Canucks host the Philadelphia Flyers.
The Canucks selected Edler, from Ostersund, Sweden, in the third round (91st overall) of the 2004 NHL draft.
He played in 925 career games for the Canucks between the 2006-07 and 2020-21 seasons, ranking fourth in franchise history and first among defencemen.
The 38-year-old leads all Vancouver defencemen with 99 goals, 310 assists and 177 power-play points with the team.
Edler also appeared in 82 career post-season contests with Vancouver and was an integral part of the Canucks’ run to the 2011 Stanley Cup final, putting up 11 points (2-9-11) across 25 games.
“I am humbled and honoured to officially end my career and retire as a member of the Vancouver Canucks,” Edler said in a release. “I consider myself lucky to have started my career with such an outstanding organization, in this amazing city, with the best fans in the NHL. Finishing my NHL career where it all began is something very special for myself and my family.”
Edler played two seasons for Los Angeles in 2021-22 and 2022-23. He did not play in the NHL last season.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
The sixth-ranked Canadian women will face World Cup champion Spain in an international friendly next month.
Third-ranked Spain will host Canada on Oct. 25 at Estadio Francisco de la Hera in Almendralejo.
The game will be the first for the Canadian women since the Paris Olympics, where they lost to Germany in a quarterfinal penalty shootout after coach Bev Priestman was sent home and later suspended for a year by FIFA over her part in Canada’s drone-spying scandal.
In announcing the Spain friendly, Canada Soccer said more information on the interim women’s coaching staff for the October window will come later. Assistant coach Andy Spence took charge of the team in Priestman’s absence at the Olympics.
Spain finished fourth in Paris, beaten 1-0 by Germany in the bronze-medal match.
Canada is winless in three previous meetings (0-2-1) with Spain, most recently losing 1-0 at the Arnold Clark Cup in England in February 2022.
The teams played to a scoreless draw in May 2019 in Logroñés, Spain in a warm-up for the 2019 World Cup. Spain won 1-0 in March 2019 at the Algarve Cup in São João da Venda, Portugal.
Spain is a powerhouse in the women’s game these days.
It won the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2022 and was runner-up in 2018. And it ousted Canada 2-1 in the round of 16 of the current U-20 tournament earlier this month in Colombia before falling 1-0 to Japan after extra time in the quarterfinal.
Spain won the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2018 and 2022 and has finished on the podium on three other occasions.
FC Barcelona’s Aitana Bonmati (2023) and Alexia Putellas (2021 and ’22) have combined to win the last three Women’s Ballon d’Or awards.
And Barcelona has won three of the last four UEFA Women’s Champions League titles.
“We continue to strive to diversify our opponent pool while maintaining a high level of competition.” Daniel Michelucci, Canada Soccer’s director of national team operations, said in a statement. “We anticipate a thrilling encounter, showcasing two of the world’s top-ranked teams.”
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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024
TORONTO – The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced cookie brand Oreo as the team’s helmet sponsor for the upcoming NHL season.
The new helmet will debut Sunday when Toronto opens its 2024-25 pre-season against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Arena.
The Oreo logo replaces Canadian restaurant chain Pizza Pizza, which was the Leafs’ helmet sponsor last season.
Previously, social media platform TikTok sponsored Toronto starting in the 2021-22 regular season when the league began allowing teams to sell advertising space on helmets.
The Oreo cookie consists of two chocolate biscuits around a white icing filling and is often dipped in milk.
Fittingly, the Leafs wear the Dairy Farmers of Ontario’s “Milk” logo on their jerseys.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 17, 2024.
