The Islanders’ latest opportunity for angst and frustration comes tonight as the Toronto Maple Leafs and their latest $11 million man roll on to Long Island.
Toronto’s Ilya The Lesser, Samsonov, is back with the NHL squad after struggling so much he was “assigned” to the AHL team while doing a “mental reset” and not actually joining that squad, but he is set to be the backup to Martin Jones tonight.
William Nylander, fresh off the contract whose negotiations we’ve heard breathlessly about for a year, continues his UFA year tear, while the Leafs overall are third in the Atlantic, trailing the hotter Bruins and Panthers.