Sheldon Keefe confirms goaltending change on Saturday.
Sheldon Keefe has been riding veteran Martin Jones but will finally give him a rest.
Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe has completely lost faith in goaltender Ilya Samsonov and that is plain to see, with veteran goaltender Martin Jones getting the nod for the 7th straight game from Keefe on Saturday in spite of the fact that Samsonov is back on the Maple Leafs main roster.
In spite of Keefe's reluctance to give Samsonov another start it sounds like Keefe will finally have to relent on Sunday as the Maple Leafs are set to play their second game of a back to back against the Detroit Red Wings.
On Saturday, Keefe somewhat cryptically confirmed that he would not be starting Jones against the Red Wings on Sunday but did so without naming Samsonov as his starter.
"Jones won't play tomorrow," said Keefe on Saturday. "That would be overdoing it even though it's a back to back at home. He's played a lot here this week already."
Again, Keefe did not name Samsonov the starter which potentially leaves the door open for Dennis Hildeby to get his first career NHL start should Keefe choose to continue to stay away from Samsonov.
"We're gonna need another guy tomorrow, but let's focus on today," said Keefe cryptically.
Samsonov has been nothing short of catastrophic for the Maple Leafs this season while Hildeby is coming off another strong performance in the American Hockey League on Friday night, stopping every shot the Toronto Marlies faced against the Belleville Senators on his way to an 8-0 win and the shutout.
