Maple Leafs’ Injury Woes Continue As Joseph Woll Will ‘Miss Some Time’ Following Win Over Senators
While the Toronto Maple Leafs earned a 4-3 victory over the Ottawa Senators on Thursday, the win wasn’t anyone’s primary focus afterwards, as the club now faces a massive void between the pipes.
Amidst one of the top performances of his young career, goaltender Joseph Woll took over the contest and frustrated his opponent through almost 60 minutes, making 29 saves on 31 shots against. But his dominating performance was overshadowed by his departure in the third period.
Woll, stopping nine of his 10 high-danger shots against, collapsed to the ice in severe pain after making a save on Senators forward Rourke Chartier. He left the rink without being able to put any weight on his left leg – an aliment that’ll sideline him indefinitely.
The 25-year-old netminder will undergo further testing when the Maple Leafs return home, but he almost certainly won’t be available for Saturday’s game against the Nashville Predators.
“It’s unfortunate, right,” Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said of Woll’s injury post-game. “He’s been playing so well. He was building such great momentum here on his season and his career. It’s a setback here now.”
“He’s going to miss some time, for sure. We’ll determine the extent of it once we get home. Obviously, he’s the big reason why we get two points here tonight.”
Adding to an already long list of injured skaters, Woll will join a group that features Matt Murray (season-ending hip surgery), John Klingberg (season-ending hip surgery), Mark Giordano (broken finger), Ilya Samsonov (illness) and William Lagesson (illness).
Prior to Woll’s departure, the Maple Leafs young phenom had made several incredible saves across the first two-and-a-half periods, including a pair on Vladimir Tarasenko and a breakaway denial of Senators captain Brady Tkachuk.
Like his Ottawa teammates, Mathieu Joseph was also on the wrong end of a spectacular sprawling save from Woll early in the final frame. However, that jaw-dropping sequence might be the origin of his lower-body injury.
With Joseph alone in front of Toronto’s net, the 6-foot-3 goaltender fully extended his left leg to make a glorious toe save, preserving his team’s 2-1 lead at the time. But he was seen favouring his left side shortly after the play advanced to the other end of the rink.
It wasn’t until later in the period that Chartier’s shot led to Woll’s removal, though it would explain why an awkward blocker save was ultimately his final one of the night before he required assistance off the ice.
Thanks to Calle Jarnkrok, Toronto led 3-2 with half a period left to play as Woll skated to the dressing room with the help of teammates Ryan Reaves and T.J. Brodie. Martin Jones was called upon in relief, making nine saves while earning his first NHL win since last April.
William Nylander added some much-needed breathing room at the 13:03 mark of the third, potting his 13 goal of the season – putting him three back of Auston Matthews (16) for the team lead.
Woll had taken the starting reins in net recently, receiving the nod in each of the Maple Leafs’ last five games, performing to a 2.60 GAA and .929 SV% in that span. But with him and Samsonov on the mend, Jones may need to step up in the short term.
“It was tough to watch, obviously,” Jones told reporters post-game. “You don’t want to see that. Just tried to get my head in the game and get ready to go.”
Jones, inked to a one-year deal worth $875,000 over the summer, cleared waivers earlier this season and has spent most of his time in the American Hockey League. He owns a 2-1-1 record with a 3.37 GAA and .870 SV% over five games with the Marlies.
The 33-year-old goaltender has logged 445 NHL games across 11 career seasons, registering 226 wins with a 2.71 GAA, .905 SV% and 28 shutouts. He’s appeared with the San Jose Sharks, Los Angeles Kings, Philadelphia Flyers, Seattle Kraken and now the Maple Leafs.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @ThomasHall85
Photo: TheAHL. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.