REPORT: Maple Leafs make roster move before tonights game - GOOD sign for team

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Ryan
March 21, 2023 (1:50 PM)

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The Toronto Maple Leafs have a lot of pressure on them this season to preform in the upcoming playoffs.

Despite having one of the best regular season teams for the past 5 years, they fizzle out and choke in the first round of the playoffs, year after year.

This season though carries a little more weight than previous. Next season will be the final year of Auston Matthews' contract, which at the end he is a UFA and could decide to leave Toronto, so they need to prove to him that Toronto is a city where he can play and win a Stanley Cup.

Also this is currently the final year of General Manager Kyle Dubas' contract, which he is fighting to save his job.

He made an interesting move this past offseason choosing to go into this season with two goaltenders that were cast-offs by their former teams in Matt Murray and Ilya Samsonov. But to this point, it's worked out with both goaltenders carrying the staring role while the other was injured. The problem is, they've both been injured this season for extended periods of time and have a history of injuries.

Samsonov has been away from the team for the birth of his child, but with the roster moves made today, it looks like he is ready to return and could be starting tonight.

One would expect that Samsonov gets the start tonight in Long Island.