Goaltender Erik Kallgren #50 of the Toronto Maple Leafs stops a shot by Teuvo Teravainen #86 of the Carolina Hurricanes during the second period at PNC Arena in Raleigh, N.C., on Nov. 6.Grant Halverson/Getty Images
Well now, that was a surprise.
Pressed into the starter’s role by an injury to Ilya Samsonov, Erik Kallgren came up big for the Maple Leafs in an unexpected 3-1 road victory on Sunday in Raleigh, N.C., over the Hurricanes.
Kallgren, Toronto’s No. 3 goalie, had 29 saves against one of the NHL’s best teams in his first win in four starts. In the three previous three, he lost to three of the league’s worst outfits.
“He battled all the way through there,” said Mitch Marner, Toronto’s right wing. Marner had an assist on the winning goal by John Tavares in the third period and now has points in 11 of 13 games. “It was a great game by him and the rest of the team.
“It’s big.”
The triumph was the Maple Leafs’ third in a row after four successive losses on the road. They return to Scotiabank Arena on Tuesday to meet the Vegas Golden Knights, who at 10-2 have the NHL’s best record. Toronto improved to 7-4-2.
In the near term, Kallgren is likely to see more action than expected after Samsonov hurt his knee during the second period on Saturday night in a 2-1 victory over the visiting Boston Bruins. Samsonov did not return for the third period and Kallgren came in and made seven stops to get the save.
Samsonov was to undergo an MRI on Sunday to determine the extent of the damage but will miss at least a week.
Samsonov had taken over the No. 1 job after Matt Murray strained an adductor on Oct. 15. He is expected to skate with teammates for the first time on Tuesday but is not yet ready to play.
Late Saturday, Toronto signed Keith Petruzzelli to a two-year entry-level contract to serve as Kallgren’s backup temporarily. Petruzzelli was 6-0 with the AHL Marlies with a .922 save percentage. He played for the Newfoundland Growlers of the East Coast League last year.
Petruzzelli would have probably been the No. 2 goalie for the Marlies if not for an injury to starter Joseph Woll. The latter, who won three of four starts for the Maple Leafs last year, had shoulder surgery and is yet to play this season.
“Not many teams in the league are going to have three goalies injured in their system and feel comfortable about it,” Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe said after the win over the Bruins. “But that is the reality we have here right now.”
Since entering in the third period on Saturday, Kallgren has turned away 36 of 37 shots.
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He started badly against Carolina, allowing a shot by Stefan Noesen to squeeze past him on a power play with 11:49 to go in the first period. After that, he was rock solid.
“I’m obviously happy with the results these last two days,” Kallgren said. “You just have to keep working and days like this will come.”
Kallgren won a duel with Frederik Andersen, the Carolina netminder who tended goal for Toronto for five years. Anderson had 18 saves in 21 attempts against him. The Hurricanes, who had won four in a row, fell to 8-3-1.
Toronto had just four shots in the first period and again in the third. It started slowly in the second as well, putting only four pucks on the net over the first eight minutes but then poured it on.
Andersen, who won 149 of 268 starts with the Maple Leafs, turned away dangerous charges by Pierre Engvall and Alexander Kerfoot. The steady pressure was rewarded, though, when Calle Jarnkrok unleashed a hard wrist shot from the high slot and it beat Andersen to the corner of the net with 90 seconds left.
It was Jarnkrok’s third of the year.
As Kallgren frustrated the opponent, Toronto kept chipping away.
Tavares put the Maple Leafs ahead for good with 11:36 left off a pretty pass from Marner. It was the 399th goal of the captain’s career and his team-leading eight of the campaign. Then William Nylander scored an insurance goal on a brilliant rush with 3:35 to play.
The right winger chased down a loose puck, got it away from Carolina defenceman Jaccob Slavin and poked it by Andersen. It was Nylander’s fifth goal of the season.
Also notable was forward Denis Malgin, who took five shots and drew a slashing penalty in an energetic performance. Between them, Marner and Auston Matthews did not register a single shot and Tavares scored on the only shot he took.
After a topsy-turvy beginning, Toronto has righted itself but still has tough challenges ahead. After the game against Vegas, it plays Pittsburgh on Friday and Vancouver on Saturday, all on home ice.
Just a week ago the team returned from a 1-2-2 road trip and appeared to be on the verge of a crisis. A good win over Boston, and a victory over Carolina in a game that had “loss” written all over it, have changed that picture.