The 27-year-old goaltender took to social media to express his gratitude to Toronto and his excitement for a fresh start in Philadelphia.
For the first time since a stunning trade that sent him packing to the City of Brotherly Love, former Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll has broken his silence.
Taking to Instagram, the 27-year-old goaltender posted a heartfelt farewell to the city that drafted him a decade ago, expressing deep gratitude for his time in Blue and White while signaling he is ready for a fresh start with the Philadelphia Flyers.
“From the bottom of my heart, thank you to the organization, the city, my friends and especially, my teammates for helping make my time in Toronto so special. I have enough memories to last a lifetime. I’ll forever be proud and grateful for my time with the Leafs. 🍁Philly, get ready.”
“The trade, the first by newly appointed Maple Leafs general manager John Chayka, caught many by surprise. Toronto sent Woll alongside fan-favourite, hard-hitting defenseman Simon Benoit to the Flyers. In return, the Maple Leafs acquired goaltender Samuel Ersson, 24-year-old Swedish blueliner Emil Andrae, and a third-round selection in the 2026 NHL Draft.
For Woll, the move marks the end of a highly scrutinized tenure in Toronto. Selected 62nd overall by the Leafs in the 2016 draft, “The Brick Woll” showed flashes of brilliant, elite-level goaltending but battled inconsistencies and untimely injuries. He departs Toronto with a career regular-season record of 63-43-9, a 2.94 goals-against average, a .906 save percentage, and four shutouts across 117 games. In the postseason, he went 6-6 with a 2.73 GAA and a .906 save percentage over 14 appearances.
However, the 2025-26 campaign was a grueling one for both Woll and the Maple Leafs, who missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in ten years. Tasked with anchoring the crease alongside Anthony Stolarz, Woll struggled behind a porous Toronto defense that surrendered the second-most goals per game in the league (3.60). He posted a 15-16-7 record, and while he recorded a career-high two shutouts, his 3.34 GAA and .899 save percentage over 39 games were the lowest marks of his NHL career.
With two seasons left on the three-year, $10.98 million contract ($3.67 million AAV) he signed in 2024, Chayka ultimately decided it was time to pivot, leveraging Toronto’s goaltending depth to accumulate future assets and roster flexibility.
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