Samsonov returned to practice on Wednesday and made the trip, but they will allow the goaltender to continue resting.

KANATA, Ont. — Ilya Samsonov will not be on the bench for the Toronto Maple Leafs when they visit the Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre on Thursday. 

"We just felt it was better to have him focus on nothing other than having a really good hard day in the gym and on the ice," Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe said. 

Martin Jones will dress as a backup to Joseph Woll for the second consecutive contest. The Russian goaltender did not dress in Saturday's 4-3 overtime loss to the Boston Bruins due to an illness from which the goaltender is still recovering.

Samsonov took part in his first full practice with the team on Wednesday after he left Tuesday's session early on due to a lingering illness. He skated with Martin Jones on Thursday during the team's optional skate ahead of their game against the Senators.

The Maple Leafs signed Jones to a one-year, $875,000 contract this summer. He's spent most of the season with the Toronto Marlies, a reality he understood at the time when signing his deal.

"I kind of knew what the situation was going in," Jones said earlier this week. "He joined an AHL team this season for the first time in 10 years and noted how different the feel is now in the league.

"Certainly not how I remember it, Jones said. "Here they treat it like an NHL club in how they take care of you and the day-to-day aspect of it."

Jones admitted Toronto's AHL club being based in the same city was a consideration in signing with the Maple Leafs. He and his wife, Alex, welcome a baby, Rory, into the world last year.

Jones has been called up to the Maple Leafs twice in the last week. Both instances were on an emergency basis.

Woll is Toronto's effective starter in net for the time being. He'll be making a career-high fifth consecutive start in the NHL on Thursday. He has a 2-1-1 record and a .927 save percentage in his last four starts.

Where to watch

Viewers in the Toronto Maple Leafs' region can watch or stream the game on TSN 4. Viewers in the Ottawa Senators' region can watch or stream the game on TSN 5.

For the rest of Canada, viewers will be able to stream the game on Sportsnet+ Premium. 

In the United States, the game will stream on ESPN+

For the rest of the world, the game is available via NHL Live.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=caPy73NvYsM[/embed]

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