John Chayka makes an official statement on Sergei Bobrovsky

Maple Leafs GM John Chayka threw his hat behind Sergei Bobrovsky after a rough showing against Seattle and knows the veteran can turn things around.

Suffice to say that Sergei Bobrovsky's Wednesday night did not turn out to be the performance that he nor the Maple Leafs wanted to have. Not only did he let in five goals on 17 shots, but the game-losing goal came off a pretty weak save attempt.

Paying him a lot of money to make those saves, Bobrovsky has confidence in himself that he can get back on track although there are questions about how his production this season has really been despite some solid showings.

Chayka stands firm behind Bobrovsky despite rough start

Another person who has unwavering confidence in Bobrovsky is the guy who signed him - Maple Leafs GM John Chayka.

Chayka explained that despite Bobrovsky's performance on Wednesday and his shaky start overall, he still believes that he can turn things around and that there isn't much of a concern in the first month of the season:

We have a lot of confidence in Bob, he's an elite competitor with a long track record of success. He holds himself to an incredibly high standard, and we know what he brings to our team.

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Bobrovsky has for all intents and purposes been mediocre given his resume and what the Maple Leafs expected of him.

He's posted a 3-5-2 record with a 3.29 GAA and .885 SV% - hardly numbers you would like from your presumed #1 starting goaltender. Anthony Stolarz has been much better overall, and it may be time to give him more than just a look.

Chayka's words hide his true feelings on the matter

But if you were to read between the lines when it comes to what John Chayka is saying, you can tell that he is really trying hard to believe his own words.

He has to feel at least a tinge of regret in trading away Joseph Woll (who has been solid on a brutal Flyers team) and then the fact that he spent so much on Bobrovsky instead of helping the D-core has to sting a little bit.

Chayka has to keep a straight face when it comes to the Bobrovsky deal, but he also has to ensure that his team can actually win games and if Bobrovsky continues to falter, then he may need to reconsider things.

For now though, he's taking things in stride and hoping that it's just early season jitters for his prized free agent signing.

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