Toronto Maple Leafs enter the summer staring at a real decision in goal, and it starts with Artur Akhtyamov.
The Leafs closed out the year 32-36-14, good for 28th overall in the league. Not exactly a banner finish.
Toronto lost seven straight to end things, capped by a 1-3 defeat on the road in Ottawa. Ugly way to wrap a season.
Sergei Bobrovsky soaked up the bulk of the workload, going 20-11 with a .876 save percentage across 52 appearances at age 37.
Anthony Stolarz was the better story when he actually played, putting up a .893 save percentage over 26 games with 8 wins.
Dennis Hildeby quietly out-produced everyone on paper, running a .912 save percentage with a shutout in 20 outings.
Then there's Akhtyamov. Three NHL games, no wins yet, and a .864 save percentage that tells you almost nothing about what he actually is.
Jim Hiller's crease puzzle starts right now in Toronto
New head coach Jim Hiller, hired in June, doesn't get to ease into this. He inherits a crowded, unproven goaltending group with real money already committed.
Bobrovsky's cap hit sits at ten million dollars. That number alone all but guarantees him the net for now, form or no form.
Behind him, Stolarz and Hildeby are essentially fighting for whatever starts are left, and Akhtyamov is stuck watching most of it from the outside.
Here's the problem nobody wants to say out loud. You cannot evaluate a young goaltender off three appearances, and Toronto has burned through most of a season without solving that.
A handful of spot starts won't cut it anymore. If the Leafs actually believe Akhtyamov is part of the answer, they need to prove it with real minutes, not token looks.
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Comparing Toronto's crease to a car with three drivers and one seat feels about right. Somebody's getting left at the curb, and it might be the guy the organization needs the most information on.
The math still doesn't favor Akhtyamov getting the runway he needs, not with Bobrovsky's contract anchoring the group and Stolarz outperforming expectations when healthy. Whether Hiller's staff finds him minutes anyway is the story to watch.
Should the Leafs commit real NHL starts to Artur Akhtyamov next season no matter what?
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