'The Way Things Have Gone For Us Of Late, It Made For An Easy Decision, Maple Leafs' Sheldon Keefe Explains Decision to Start Martin Jones Over NHL Rookie Dennis Hildeby Against Anaheim Ducks
Jones pitched a shutout on Tuesday and will be the first Maple Leafs goaltender to make starts on consecutive nights this season.
ANAHEIM, Calif. — After taking a night to mull it over, Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Sheldon Keefe has elected to start Martin Jones in goal for the second consecutive night instead of rookie Dennis Hildeby when the club visits the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center on Wednesday.
"From our end, we’re trying to build some positive momentum as a team and we had a good team effort last night," Keefe said of the decision.
Jones made 31 saves in a 3-0 victory against the Los Angeles Kings at Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday. Following the game, Keefe hinted that he might ride the veteran goaltender due to the unusual circumstances that led to Hildeby's call-up to the Leafs. Toronto's head coach also reasoned that there was no travel between games except for a bus ride. But another factor in the decision was the light load on Jones as the Leafs played one of their more complete games of the season.
"The way things have gone for us of late, it made for an easy decision," He said.
Hildeby, Toronto's fourth-round selection (122nd overall) in the 2022 NHL Draft, was called up by the Maple Leafs on Monday after the club placed Ilya Samsonov on waivers and sent him down to the Toronto Marlies to clear his head.
Keefe says they do want to get the rookie goaltender some experience at some point. But the overriding message is the Leafs want to avoid a lapse in their game against teams that sit near the bottom of the standings with a 13-23-0 record.
"It's hard for us to have that conversation on one end and then go with the goalie that has never played in the league when you've got another guy coming off a shutout" Keefe reasoned. "In these types of games, we have to be ready and we have to be sharp."
The Leafs have seen good efforts like the ones against better teams like the Kings only to see them struggle against teams near the bottom of the league. Two losses each against the Ottawa Senators (14-19-0) and the Columbus Blue Jackets 12-19-8 come to mind.
Hildeby is in the midst of his first season of playing professional hockey in North America and the club was hesitant to call him up as Samsonov struggled. The 6-foot-7 Hildeby has a 7-5-3 record with a .919 save percentage with the Marlies this season.
Toronto's other goaltenders are unavailable for various reasons. Joseph Woll, who took over the club's starting goaltending duties amid Samsonov's struggles is out with a high-ankle sprain, suffered against the Ottawa Senators on Dec. 7. Matt Murray has been on long-term injured reserve since the start of the season following hip surgery, however the goalie has taken the ice for a light skate.
The Leafs are cognizant of the Ducks' ability to beat some of the better teams in the league as Keefe cited their 5-2 win against the Vegas Golden Knights at Honda Center on Dec. 27.
One other change in the lineup will see Pontus Holmberg come into the lineup and Nick Robertson will sit as a healthy scratch. Keefe cited Holmberg's play in the game against the Carolina Hurricanes as a reason to give him another opportunity in goal, while looking for more from the team's third line.
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