'I'm Glad That Was His Advice': Maple Leafs Goaltending Coach Curtis Sanford Talked Sheldon Keefe Out Of Pulling Ilya Samsonov in Comeback Against Blue Jackets

"Curtis felt strongly that Sammy should stay in and fight and battle with the team," Keefe said after the team's 6-5 overtime loss on Thursday. "I’m glad that that was his advice and glad that's the decision that we made. Because I liked the fact that Sammy was a part of that comeback and I liked the fact that he made some saves for us early in that third too to kind of make sure that they didn’t get any life back."

The last time Keefe pulled Samsonov mid-game was against the Tampa Bay Lightning on November 6. After Tampa's Brayden Point made it 4-1 for the Lightning at the 15:13 mark of the second period, Samsonov was pulled immediately and had a bit of an outburst on the bench throwing his helmet in frustration.

Joseph Woll played the remainder of that game and was able to help Toronto battle back to defeat Tampa 6-5 in overtime. But the Leafs do not have Woll available as the goaltender recovers from a high-ankle sprain sustained in a game against the Ottawa Senators on Dec. 7.

Although the Leafs were able to get a point, it'll be interesting to see where Samsonov's head is at before the team's next game on Saturday at home against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Was this enough to have Samsonov feel good about his game or will the struggles between the pipes continue? The goaltender wasn't made available after the game for interviews and he appeared less-than-thrilled while sitting in his locker stall after the game.

With Woll out, Martin Jones has been elevated to the Leafs main roster. He has a 2-0-0 record with a .902 save percentage in two appearances this season. Samsonov is 5-1-5 this season with an .878 percentage. 

The club took the day off on Friday after initially being scheduled to hold a practice. There are whispers of a flu going around the team and staying away from the rink another day might help in the recovery process.