If it paid off, the esteemed cup-winning goaltender could be a game-changer. If his injury woes continues, he would only be a big salary on a cap-strapped team.
With this boom or bust potential in mind, Kyle Dubas pulled the trigger. While when he's been healthy he's been great, Dubas is definitely wishing he could go back and reverse the move.
Ilya Samsonov has been a great backup, and a solid starter when needed, but he's definitely not the man meant for a deep playoff run. He may be one day, but he is still very young and unrefined as a netminding talent.
With a very thin goalie market, it won't be easy to shake things up. If they can't find a solution, we may be looking at another first round exit in Toronto.
Kyle Dubas plan was ruined by COVID. The salary cap didn't increase for the past 3 years and this has cost them greatly on defence. With the loss of Jake Muzzin, things are getting tight in the backend also.