Analyst Claims the Toronto Maple Leafs have Found their Andrei Vasilevskiy

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TJ Tucker
January 16, 2024 (9:53 PM)

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The Toronto Maple Leafs need a number one goalie, and an analyst says there's one waiting in the wings who could be that team's Andrei Vasilevskiy.

Toronto Maple Leafs General Manager Brad Treliving sewed up a major stitch in the Toronto Maple Leafs' future today, signing William Nylander to an eight-year deal worth $92 million. There's another major problem still waiting, though as the team is still desperate for a stable, number one goaltender. One analyst believes that goalie is in the system, and has the potential to be Toronto's Andrei Andrei Vasilevskiy.

Former player, and current TV analyst and podcaster Paul Bissonnette appeared on Spittin' Chiclets today and said he's been going deep into Reddit threads to find a potential saviour between the pipes.

"And this Dennis Hildeby, he might be the next Vasilevskiy, that's what I'm hearing. I'm hearing Vezina aspirations."

That tidbit was a bit tongue-in-cheek on Bissonnette's part. But, he did get more serious after that.

"I've said this all along. It's just a matter of time before one of these goalies we've never heard of in the organization that comes from the depths of the minors, and comes and saves us. So, I'm not worried one bit. This happens every year. We stumble a little bit out of the gate, everybody freaks out, and then midway through the season, before All-Star, or around the Holidays. Yup, another hiccup, who gives a f--k. They're gonna make playoffs, everything's gonna work itself out, it's our year."

If you weren't aware, Bissonnette counts himself as a member of "Leafs Nation."

As for the Vasilevskiy comparison, he's a bit off. Hildeby was a fourth-round draft pick who came to North America from the Swedish Hockey League last year to play two games for the Toronto Marlies. He has another 15 for Marlies this season, but has yet to play an NHL game. While Vasilevskiy did play in Russia for another two years after being drafted by the Tampa Bay Lightning, he was he 19th overall pick in the 2012 draft, he played in the KHL, which is a step higher than the Swedish Hockey League (that is starting to change, though), and had more NHL games under his belt when he was Hildeby's age.