If there was one thing that I was reminded of watching the
Dennis Hildeby extension come across the wire on Tuesday morning, it’s that the
Toronto Maple Leafs are absolutely STACKED in between the pipes right now.
Seriously, I don’t remember a time this organization possessed this much crease depth —at least in recent memory.
But honestly, you would probably need to go back all the way to the dreaded Tuukka Rask/Justin Pogge era, right?
Any way you slice it, the Leafs have every reason to believe in Hildeby, even though the 24-year-old’s coming off a turbulent campaign. The three years they handed him will not only give him time to develop but it will also allow him to push for a job at the NHL level in due time. The contract doesn’t become a one-way deal until Hildeby’s 26, when presumably, everyone should have a pretty good understanding of what he truly is. Indisputably, it was a tidy piece of business by Brad Treliving and company.
Between
Anthony Stolarz and Joseph Woll at the NHL level and Hildeby and Russian
Artur Akhtyamov in the American Hockey League, this administration has made the days of Michael Hutchinson easy to forget. Not to pick on him but it seemed like the Dubas era featured about 53 different netminders to dawn the blue and white. Needless to say, acquiring David Rittich for a third-round pick in 2022 will continue to haunt my dreams for many years to come.
Most importantly, Toronto’s evolving crease depth gives them flexibility to do a few things down the road. All in all, it’s probably one of the reasons why they’ve been able to slow play the Stolarz situation a bit here, too. They love him, but at the end of the day, they’re not going to overpay to retain him. It makes a lot of sense.
In the grand scheme of things, teams are always looking for goaltending, which bodes well for the Leafs on the trade-front moving forward. For instance, fresh off another disappointing loss in the Stanley Cup Final, the Edmonton Oilers are dying for an upgrade in goal. Barring something unforeseen, it doesn’t look like Stan Bowman will be able to get the job done —at least before opening night. They have a championship calibre roster paired with a mediocre crease, and ultimately, that’s why they keep falling short when it matters most.
With puck drop just around the corner, it’s no secret that the Leafs would still like to do a few things. That said, they will likely play the long game here, and that’s the correct course of action. In the coming months, it will be fascinating to see if the Stolarz/Woll tandem can replicate what they did last season in 2025-26. In addition to that, there’s reason to be excited for what’s to come, too. If Hildeby and Akhtyamov can continue to develop and improve, the Leafs will be sitting pretty for many years to come.
Bottom line: You can never have enough goaltending.
This is a strange feeling.
