James Reimer is back in a Toronto Maple Leafs uniform.
The 37-year-old goaltender has signed a professional tryout with the Maple Leafs. The signing comes days after Joseph Woll took a leave of absence from the team to attend to a personal family matter.
Reimer played 24 games in the NHL last season, split between the Buffalo Sabres and Anaheim Ducks. He tallied 10 wins and a .896 save percentage. The netminder has played 15 seasons in the NHL, with the Maple Leafs, Sabres, Ducks, San Jose Sharks, Florida Panthers, Carolina Hurricanes, and the Detroit Red Wings.
The last time he played for the Maple Leafs was during the 2015-16 season, where he tallied nine wins and a .918 save percentage in 32 games. Reimer was then traded to the Sharks with Jeremy Morin for Alex Stalock, Ben Smith, and a conditional fourth-round pick.
'We're All Here For Him': Maple Leafs React To Joseph Woll Taking A Personal Leave of Absence, Lend Support
The Toronto Maple Leafs revealed some unexpected news on Tuesday when they announced that goaltender Joseph Woll had stepped away to deal with a personal family issue.
Riemer was originally drafted in the fourth round (99th overall) during the 2006 NHL Draft. The last time he played the Maple Leafs was on Apr. 13, 2024, with the Red Wings. He helped Detroit get the 5-4 overtime win, stopping 32 of 36 shots.
Toronto now has four goaltenders on their training camp roster: Anthony Stolarz, Reimer, Dennis Hildeby, and Artur Akhtyamov. Reimer wasn’t on the ice with the team’s main group for practice on Friday.
Craig Berube explains the addition of Reimer
Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube cautioned against making anything more of Woll's situation with the addition of Reimer, citing the only reason for the move was "depth".
"Just (that) he's an NHL goalie. Been an NHL goalie, but, I've never met the guy," Berube said on Friday.
Maple Leafs teammates react to Reimer's addition
Morgan Rielly, Toronto's longest tenured Maple Leaf, weighed in on being teammates with Reimer again.
"He's been around for so long now. That doesn't just happen," Rielly said of Reimer's NHL career. "He's been working really hard. He's obviously a great goalie. And it's just cool to see him back in the building."
William Nylander was in the Leafs organization during Reimer's tenure, but the two never played together. Nylander was called up to make his Leafs and NHL debut just days after Reimer was traded by the Maple Leafs to the San Jose Sharks.
"Just an amazing guy. It's great to see him playing," Nylander said. "He's been here and coming back, so it's going to be a lot of fun to have him back in the squad."
Anthony Stolarz, who will work with Reimer between the pipes, pointed to Reimer's unique style of goaltending as something he's eager to pick up on.
"His patience was something that I noticed. So I'm looking forward to seeing him in here and getting to work with him."
When might Reimer play with the Leafs?
The Maple Leafs have three pre-season games remaining, and it sounds like Stolarz is going to appear in 1-2 of those games. Reimer is a solid candidate to get into action for Toronto's final pre-season game against the Detroit Red Wings on Oct. 4. Depending on how long it takes the goaltender to get up to speed, it could happen earlier.
Reimer is expected to the join the Leafs on the ice on Saturday.
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