Surprise Position Battle in Toronto

Goalie competition is heating up after first preseason action

HockeyFeed
HockeyFeed
Published 6 years ago
Surprise Position Battle in Toronto
Keystone Press

The NHL preseason is the best opportunity for players on the cusp of cracking a roster to prove their worth. These games boast some exciting position battles for the bubble players and as Kristen Shilton of TSN writes in her latest article, the Toronto Maple Leafs appear to have a competitive battle for the duty of backup for Frederik Andersen. The two competitors that will be auditioning for this role are newly signed Curtis McElhinney and AHL starter Garret Sparks, who both took the net last night in the Leafs first preseason game against the Ottawa Senators.

It certainly wasn’t the best showing for either goalie as the Senators were firing from all cylinders on their way to a 6-2 victory. McElhinney took to the nets to start the game and allowed four goals on twelve shots before being replaced by Sparks half way through the second, who allowed two quick goals of his own. While this is certainly no time to panic, this game did raise some questions to which goalie could step up in the remaining preseason activity for the backup role.

McElhinney was signed to a two-year $1.7 million this past offseason after posting respectable numbers as the Leafs backup goaltender last year. He received quite a bit of press after Don Cherry publicly mentioned that McElhinney was one of the best pickups he’s ever seen. It was a very bold statement for a goalie who has been a career backup and has never played for more than 32 games in a season. He ended up finishing the year with the Leafs posting six wins, seven losses, and a 914 SAV %.

On the other side there is Sparks who made his first NHL start in the 2015-16 season and took Leaf Nation by storm posting a shutout in his debut with the Leafs. Unfortunately the stardom didn’t last long as he had very pedestrian numbers in 17 games as a rookie backup. Last season he was named the starter for the Toronto Marlies and had a solid campaign despite battling injuries all year. The Leafs are hopeful this development can translate back to the NHL for the 24-year old. For the first time in a while Toronto has a starting goaltender that they can rely on in Andersen. In today’s NHL it is extremely important to have a solid replacement for the games that they can rest their starter and it will be a battle that will continue right to the regular season. For now it appears that the job is McElhinney’s to lose but a lot can change throughout the preseason and Sparks will certainly not back down. Who do you think can win the role of backup to Andersen this season?