Toronto Maple Leafs place goaltender Matt Murray on injured reserve

It has happened again.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have placed goaltender Matt Murray on injured reserve after suffering an ankle injury prior to the NHL all-star break.

Murray was scheduled to start against Ottawa on Jan. 27 but was pulled in favor of Ilya Samsonov after warmups.

Murray previously missed time with an injury before what would have been first start against Ottawa earlier this year with an abductor injury. Murray has dealt with injury issues throughout his career with various upper- and lower-body issues, concussions and others. It’s a big blow for a goaltender who struggled heading into the break.

The 28-year-old goaltender has an 11-5-2 record, but has a 2-2-0 record in 2023. He was pulled after allowing four goals on eight shots against Florida in his last start on Jan. 17, a game in which the Leafs came back to win with Samsonov in the net.

In a corresponding move, the Leafs recalled goaltender Joseph Woll and forwards Pontus Holmberg and Alex Steeves from the Toronto Maple Leafs.

It’ll be interesting to see how coach Sheldon Keefe balances the workload for Samsonov and Woll in the short-term. We’re not sure exactly when Murray will return, but Samsonov had some hit-or-miss efforts leading up to the break. He’s the No. 1 right now, no doubt, but Woll is an AHL all-star with a 13-1-0 record with the Marlies this season. Woll has four games of NHL experience with a 3-1-0 record, so it’ll be interesting to see if he gets a chance during the team’s back-to-back with Columbus this weekend.

The Leafs sit second in the Atlantic Division, 13 points behind the powerhouse Boston Bruins. The club is without Auston Matthews for the next few games with a knee injury, while Mac Hollowell, Nicholas Robertson, Carl Dahlstrom, Jake Muzzin and Nicholas Robertson are all out, too.