Former Maple Leafs goaltender Ilya Samsonov Indirectly Calls Out his Former Team After First Win with Vegas
The Toronto Maple Leafs parted ways with Ilya Samsonov this off-season, and now the Golden Knights goaltender has seemingly called out his former team.
The Toronto Maple Leafs moved on from Ilya Samsonov this off-season, opting to make Joseph Woll the No. 1 moving forward , while also bringing in Anthony Stolarz to create perhaps the best goaltending tandem Toronto has seen in quite some time. Despite an injury to Woll, the team are 2-1-0 behind the pairing of Stolarz and Dennis Hildeby, and with a new Head Coach, they're seemingly not missing Samsonov.
After being moved on by Toronto, the 27-year old signed with the Vegas Golden Knights, and in start one of the season, he stopped 22 of the 23 shots he saw as the team picked up another big victory. Unsurprisingly however, he used his post-game speech to seemingly call out the Toronto Maple Leafs, and potentially the Washington Capitals too, calling Vegas the best atmosphere in the NHL.
During his time in Toronto, Samsonov was a very quiet player that attempted to let his play do the talking for him, but after being dominated in the Stanley Cup Playoffs last season, moving on from him was the best play for the Maple Leafs. It's unclear at this point whether he was exaggerating to get the attention of Toronto's fans, or whether he truly believes it, as Vegas has been talked about as one of the top arenas to play in the league by many players in their seven year existence.
The Golden Knights are set to visit Toronto on November 20th, and while many fans likely would have given Samsonov a solid reception upon his return, these comments may make them change their mind, as he may now get quite the icy reception upon return to Toronto.
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