TORONTO — Unfortunately for Joseph Woll, training camp is seldom the smooth ramp to regular-season action it is meant to be.
The Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender took an indefinite leave of absence on Tuesday to attend to a family matter. No further details were provided. No timeline for Woll’s return was given. And general manager Brad Treliving asked reporters gathered at Ford Performance Centre to respect the playerâ€s privacy.
“Itâ€s a private matter at this point, and Joe and us intend to keep it that way for him,” Treliving said.Â
“Itâ€s not a substance abuse issue. Itâ€s a personal family matter that Joe is going to deal with.”
Added close friend and teammate Matthew Knies: “Weâ€re all here for him and feel for him, and we’re just gonna try our best to support him and give him space
“I think heâ€s fine. Iâ€ve yet to get in contact with him, but I will here shortly, and hopefully he’s doing good.”
The 27-year-oldâ€s status for opening night is in doubt, again. And Torontoâ€s goaltending depth could be tested early.
Wollâ€s plan to start Game 1 for Toronto last fall was derailed when he suffered a lower-body injury in training camp.
“It was disappointing,” Woll recalled in a recent sit-down with Sportsnet.ca. “But youâ€re only afforded so much time to be disappointed. And it was disappointing because I knew how much work I put in on my body, and I felt like thatâ€s the most preparation Iâ€d done for a season. And then, just like that, youâ€re out for a week or so.
“Disappointing. But whatâ€s really important is that I stayed healthy then for the rest of it. A minor setback, but I learned through it, and then was happy with how I maintained for the rest of the season.”
Treliving is encouraged that Woll will return.
In the interim, the GM maintains he is comfortable rolling with newly re-signed prospect Dennis Hildeby as the No. 2 netminder behind Anthony Stolarz.
“I don’t know too much about it. I just know we love Joe, and weâ€re here to support him and hope he gets back as soon as possible,” said Hildeby, who signed a three-year, $2.53-million extension before camp.
“It means theyâ€re showing confidence in me, which helps. Now it’s up to me to earn that trust every day. Just keep going, working hard.â€
The six-foot-seven Hildeby will get his first exhibition start Tuesday at Scotiabank Arena and is trying to mould his game after the equally ginormous Stolarz (six-foot-six).
“We love the size. And heâ€s got a lot of tools, too. He’s athletic for a big guy. And heâ€s been practising well, especially lately,†coach Craig Berube said.
The 24-year-old Swede is trying to eliminate some of the scramble in his style that resulted in an .878 save percentage over his first six NHL appearances last season.
More composure. Controlled aggression.
“Maybe bit of a bumpy road,†Hildeby concedes. “But I feel like coming into this year, I’m more aware of how I want to play.
“When I feel good, it doesnâ€t look too hard.â€
Though Hildeby was ostensibly re-signed to be the third-stringer behind Woll and Stolarz, neither goalie ahead of him on the depth chart has played more than 42 games in a single season.
The chances of the Leafs leaning on the unproven youngster at some point are high now that Treliving has bypassed the veteran security blanket of creases past (see: Matt Murray, Martin Jones).
Hildebyâ€s opportunity may come sooner than imagined with Woll on leave.
“Itâ€s obviously a tough situation for him,†Berube said.
“We miss him, and weâ€re all here to support him as best we can.â€
One-Timers: Max Domi did not skate Tuesday because he was attending his grandfatherâ€s funeral… Simon Benoit remains sidelined with an upper-body injury. Berube doesnâ€t believe itâ€s serious…. Brandon Carloâ€s approach to all those Berube battle drills with teammates: “You pull back on the cross-checks maybe a little bit more, just on the low back. But other than that, I think it’s a free-for-all. You want to battle. You want to show that compete.â€â€¦ Auston Matthews†ideal number of pre-season games to shake off the rust is two…. The Leafs (1-0) host the Ottawa Senators (0-1) in pre-season action at 7 p.m. ET.
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