Toronto Maple Leafs head coach Jim Hiller shared his reaction to a bad game by the team’s starting goalie, Sergei Bobrovsky.
The Maple Leafs lost 5-4 to the Seattle Kraken on Wednesday night in a game Bobrovsky will surely want to get back.
The veteran netminder allowed 5 goals by the Kraken on just 17 shots, while making just 12 saves, for a poor .707 SV% in the game, well below the NHL standard.
The game-winning goal by Kraken defenseman Brandon Montour with just 33 seconds left in the game was what you could call a “softie” and one that Bobrovsky needed to stop to send the game to overtime and allow his team to get at least one point.
In the end, though, the Maple Leafs lost their second straight game.
Jim Hiller Comments on Bad Game by Sergei Bobrovsky
Speaking to reporters after the Maple Leafs’ 5-4 loss to Seattle, coach Hiller shared his thoughts on his goalie’s performance.
“I thought he was alright. I think the last one he probably would want that one back, but one goes off a toe, one goes off a stick. That part of it, he can’t do much. But yeah, the last one, he probably wants back,” Hiller said.
Sergei Bobrovsky This Year
This summer, the Maple Leafs signed Bobrovsky to a three-year, $21 million contract to be the team’s starting goalie.
Bobrovsky, a former two-time Vezina Trophy winner as the NHL’s best goaltender and a two-time Stanley Cup winner with the Florida Panthers, is 38 years old and is coming off a down year for the Panthers. But based on his strong body of work during his NHL career, Maple Leafs GM John Chayka handed him a big contract to mind the net for Toronto.
However, the early returns for the Maple Leafs have been poor, as Bobrovsky has a .885 SV% and a 3.29 GAA for Toronto, along with a 3-5-2 record. Maple Leafs backup goalie Anthony Stolarz has outplayed Bobrovsky to this point, so it will be interesting to see if Hiller continues to stand by Bobrovsky as his No. 1 starting golaie or if Stolarz can start getting more starts.
Jim Hiller Reacts After Bad Game by Sergei Bobrovsky