3 ideal landings for Toronto Maple Leafs' Ilya Samsonov

By Cole Shelton

Modified May 08, 2024 14:56 GMT

Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Ilya Samsonov wrapped up his second season with the team, which likely will be his last.

Samsonov lost his starting job to Joseph Woll during the playoffs, as he struggled in the opening-round series against the Boston Bruins.

With Samsonov being a pending free agent, Toronto might not rehire him. If they don't, here are three landing spots for the goalie.

3 landing spots for Ilya Samsonov

#1, Los Angeles Kings

The Los Angeles Kings signed Cam Talbot to a one-year deal to compete with David Rittich for the starting job. The Kings had shaky goaltending all season long, as Talbot struggled in the playoffs and was pulled.

With Talbot being a pending free agent, Los Angeles could move on from him. If they do, Ilya Samsonov could be a logical replacement. Samsonov could be a good backup behind Rittich, or split starts.

Samsonov is a good stop-gap for a year until the Kings find a more permanent goalie.

#2, Pittsburgh Penguins

Kyle Dubas is the former Toronto Maple Leafs GM who brought Ilya Samsonov to Toronto two off-seasons ago.

Tristan Jarry, the Penguins starting goalie, struggled last season. Alex Nedeljkovic ended the year as the team's starting goalie, but he's a pending free agent.

If Nedeljkovic doesn't return, Dubas re-uniting with Samsonov to be the backup behind Jarry makes sense.

#3, San Jose Sharks

The San Jose Sharks need to address their goaltending issue this off-season, and Ilya Samsonov could be a stop-gap for them.

San Jose ended the year with Devin Cooley and Georgi Romanov as their goalies, but both are more AHL or backup goalies at best. Samsonov could be the starting goalie for the Sharks and show he can still be a starting goalie in the AHL.

With San Jose near the bottom of the standings, a gamble on Samsonov could be worth it to see if he can find his form.