Why I Wasn't A Fan Of The Leafs Calling Up Dennis Hildeby

Current Stats (AHL)

Dennis Hildeby (22) has been a top goalie in the AHL during his first full season in the AHL. With a current record of 7-5-3, those stats don't tell the full story. The Marlies have been dealing with injuries, call-ups, etc. but Hildeby has still put up solid numbers. Through 15 games so far, Hildeby has posted a .919 SV% and a 2.20 GAA. From watching his 2 games toward the end of last season, I was expecting this year to be a lot of getting used to the North American style of hockey, but instead, he has come in and is ready to compete for an NHL spot.

Why I wasn’t a big fan of the call-up

It might be a hot take to say I wasn’t happy about the call-up, but I have a reason. Many Leafs fans probably remember Keith Petruzzelli. Petruzzelli (24) was tearing up the AHL at the start of last season and upgraded his AHL contract to an NHL contract, making him eligible for call-up due to injuries with the Leafs' goalies. Petruzzelli was spending his time with the Leafs on the bench, ultimately slowing down his momentum, and it was hard for him to regain it again. Petruzzelli never really got back to that level and, after a while, lost the net to Joseph Woll. Petruzzelli now finds himself as the backup/1b option to Hildeby. My fear is that history might repeat itself. As mentioned, he was doing really well to start the season and now comes back to the AHL after being the Leafs' backup for 11 days. I don’t think it was terrible as he got the opportunity to practice with top NHL players, but I think it would have been good for him to get a bit of game time throughout his short stint on the roster. Granted, Martin Jones has been holding the crease down. I think if the Leafs knew they were going to have Jones as the starter, even on the back-to-backs, they should have called up Petruzzelli instead and let Hildeby continue with the Marlies.

On Monday, the Leafs announced that they have recalled Ilya Samsonov and have sent Hildeby back to the Marlies. It was also later announced that Hildeby will be headed to the AHL All-Star Game in February along with teammate Alex Steeves.

Looking into the future

As Hildeby returns to the Marlies, he will reclaim his spot as the starting goalie/1a. In the games that he was gone, Petruzzelli and Luke Cavallin were holding down the crease in the meantime. Hildeby joins a struggling Marlies team; the Marlies have been winless in their last 7.

This topic is just a "What if", but I don't see why the Leafs would want to risk of this happening again.

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