Lately, Ilya Samsonov has not been himself. He has been letting in soft goals and fans have been letting him have it. Last night he revealed that he is struggling mentally after letting in five goals and being pulled.
When a goaltender is struggling mentally, his statistics struggle, and in turn, his team struggles. However, when a goaltender is going strong mentally, the opposite effect takes place.
If Samsonov can bounce back, he can be the Leafs starter in the playoffs and help them on a deep playoff run and a hopeful Stanley Cup victory. Only time will tell if Samsonov can get out of this rut or if this will be the demise of his career as a Maple Leaf.