Even though Woll’s health has been an issue throughout his brief career, if he can perform at his peak, that might turn out to be a great deal.
Woll, who will only make $766K next season, was supposed to become an RFA at the end of this year and be granted arbitration rights. In order to re-sign Woll at a reasonable cost, the Leafs are taking a low-risk strategy rather than waiting out the season and possibly having to struggle through talks next summer.
There is no ideal response when it comes to NHL goalies who rank #1 and eventually win a Stanley Cup. As seen by the Florida Panthers and Edmonton Oilers, who both advanced to Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals despite the Panthers having a $10 million goalkeeper and the Oilers having a $2.8 million netminder,.
It doesn’t really matter how much a goalkeeper costs as long as he can save you from elimination, and once the playoffs begin, all you really need is a player who can save you from elimination.
The Toronto Maple Leafs Are wisely signing Joseph Woll Again
Considering that Woll’s injuries occurred during a terrible period of last year, I can get why some people are furious about this deal. Ilya Samsonov was replaced by Woll, who took up the position and performed brilliantly as Samsonov labored terribly until unexpectedly getting hurt in an odd play.
Subsequently, following his role in helping the Leafs overcome a 3-1 series deficit, he was hurt on the final play of Game 6 and was unable to return for Game 7.
Woll wasn’t able to play when the club needed him, but this team still needs to give him an opportunity. For Toronto, those injuries may have been a blessing in disguise since Woll may have asked for a substantially larger contract had he been healthy the entire time. Rather, they’re paying less and acquiring him for a shorter period of time, which will benefit the squad as a whole.
Ultimately, even if Woll performs poorly, this squad will not suffer from a $4 million contract. In relation to the Oilers, they made it to the Stanley Cup Finals despite having Jack Campbell sign a long-term contract worth $5 million AAV.
They can just put Woll’s contract on LTIR and move on if it’s that terrible and he never gets healthy again.
Considering that the Leafs haven’t produced a goalie in more than 30 years, it makes sense to take a chance on Woll since I believe that he will be their regular starter.
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