Once Woll is ready to play games, he'll likely get a couple of starts with the Marlies on a conditioning loan.
Joseph Woll stood by the Toronto Maple Leafs' bench on Tuesday with his helmet off and took a breath after practice concluded. The skate spanned over 40 minutes, and Woll was as involved as ever since returning to the team on Oct. 24.
The 27-year-old is inching closer and closer to game action, something that didn't seem to be in the cards one month ago when he was still away from the team due to personal reasons.
"It's getting close," Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube said on when Woll might see game action.
"I don't want to give you a timeline and then it's changed. But I can just say this — he's in a real good spot. It's great to have him out with us in practice and stuff, and he's in a good spot and he's doing well."
Once Woll is ready to return, he'll likely see some games in the AHL with the Toronto Marlies on a conditioning loan. Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving said as much when he addressed the media following the goaltender's return to the team in mid-October.
"It's probably not unreasonable to expect, once we get to that stage, of him going and playing some conditioning games with the Marlies," Treliving said on Oct. 27. "It's really just, we're going to take our lead from Joe on how he's feeling on a daily basis and sort of getting up to speed."
A conditioning loan with the Marlies would last for up to six days and three games. The Maple Leafs could ask for an extension of two more games, which has happened in the past. However, with a goaltender like Woll, one or two starts might be enough for him to say he's ready for NHL action.
He would remain on the team's long-term injured reserve while on the conditioning loan.
"It's just a matter of getting reps, and there's a difference of being on the ice and you progress into a practice where you've got traffic and bodies around, and then the next step is obviously getting into game action," Treliving added.
With Woll out, the Maple Leafs have primarily gone to Stolarz for most of the starts. He'll be back in the net on Wednesday against the Utah Mammoth after stopping 34 of 37 shots in a 4-3 comeback win against the Pittsburgh Penguins on Monday.
The 31-year-old is up to five wins and a .896 save percentage through 10 games.
Cayden Primeau, whom the Maple Leafs claimed off waivers before the opening game of the season, has appeared in three games with Toronto, winning two and posting a .838 save percentage in that span.
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