The Toronto Maple Leafs’ three-game winning streak came to a screeching halt when the Montreal Canadiens dealt them a 2-1 shootout defeat at the Scotiabank Arena in a thrilling turn of events. The Leafs fought long and hard, but ultimately, in the league’s oldest rivalry, the Habs had the last laugh.

However, despite everything that went wrong for the Leafs, fans saw a glimmer of hope. Even head coach Craig Berube, who has often sounded dejected and frustrated in post-game media availabilities, sounded optimistic about a particular element of the roster at the moment.

Dennis Hildeby Offers Hope to Toronto Maple Leafs Fans

For the Maple Leafs this season, injury woes have been endless. From Auston Matthews, Chris Tanev, to Matthew Knies, the Leafs’ major players had been sidelined thanks to injuries. Then there was goaltending: the November 11 game against the Boston Bruins was not just another loss for the Leafs; it also resulted in what appears to be quite a grave injury to netminder Anthony Stolarz.

To further complicate things on that front, Joseph Woll was placed on the injured reserve on Saturday. The Stolarz-Woll tandem had proved particularly useful for the Leafs previously, so the two injuries were bound to deal a significant blow to the team’s odds. Consequently, the Leafs recalled G Artur Akhtyamov from the Toronto Marlies for reinforcements.

However, goaltending proved to be the least of the Maple Leafs’ worries in the showdown against the Habs. 24-year-old Dennis Hildeby really showed up for the team. The goalie made 33 saves, registering a save percentage of .971. “The power play needs to come through for us, and it didn’t, but I thought our goaltending was good and we got a point out of it,” Craig Berube noted following the team’s loss, as reported by independent NHL correspondent Dave McCarthy.

“Hildeby is playing great and they’re wasting it,” a disgruntled NHL fan noted on X following the Habs’ victory on Toronto’s home ice, highlighting how the goalie’s spectacular efforts went to waste.

“Hildeby played amazing tonight. He far exceeded my expectations,” stated a social media user, aptly conveying the fan base’s admiration for this rising goaltender.

“Hildeby is going to get steamrolled by the Lightning on Monday, the way this team plays in front of him.” The Maple Leafs fan’s comment was a timely reminder for the rest of the team to straighten its game, or else Hildeby’s goalie skills simply wouldn’t matter.

“Hildeby was a beast tonight,” stated another, echoing a popular opinion.

After a thoroughly underwhelming season, the 24-year-old’s performance is good news for the Maple Leafs. However, the team still has a lot of ground left to cover before it can fully redeem itself.