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Maple Leafs Prospect Roundup: Enter the Hildebeast, Danford vying for roster spot with Canada
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Photo credit: © Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images
Nick Richard
Dec 9, 2025, 10:00 ESTUpdated: Dec 9, 2025, 09:49 EST
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Over an 82-game schedule, different stories emerge to tell the tale of a team’s season, and Dennis Hildeby is turning into quite a story for the Toronto Maple Leafs just when they need him the most.
Goaltending was a big part of the equation that saw the Leafs win the Atlantic Division a season ago, but it has been a struggle for much of the early part of this season. There was Joseph Woll’s extended absence to begin the season, which led to Anthony Stolarz shouldering a heavier workload than the team would have liked. Waiver pickup Cayden Primeau wasn’t the answer behind him, and he was quickly jettisoned from the organization after three subpar appearances in the blue and white. Stolarz struggled to the tune of an .884 SV% through 13 games before he went down with an injury back on November 11th, and he hasn’t been seen on the ice since then. Woll finally returned to the team in mid-November and was arguably the team’s best player through eight games, helping them salvage their season from going completely off the rails, before he was forced to leave last Thursday’s contest against Carolina with an apparent lower-body injury.
Now, it has fallen on Hildeby to backstop the club through a crucial stretch of their season, and the 24-year-old rookie is taking advantage of the opportunity in a big way. He has stepped up when called upon in difficult situations, entering games in relief of struggling or injured teammates four times already this season, and in his fifth start of the campaign against Tampa Bay on Monday night, he delivered his best performance in the NHL to date.
The Leafs played a solid, tight-checking game against the Lightning, but Hildeby still had to be the best player on the ice, and he was. He got a little help early on as Troy Stecher deftly pulled a puck off the goal line, and a bit more help from his goalposts late in the game, but he was sensational on his way to stopping all 29 shots he faced for his first NHL shutout.
Monday night’s victory over the Lightning marked just Hildeby’s second win of the season, but that isn’t an accurate representation of just how important he’s been to the Leafs. Again, a large portion of his playing time has come in relief, where he has helped secure a win or given the team a chance to come back from an early deficit, but the bottom line is that his .936 SV% on the season is good enough for a share of the league lead with Minnesota’s Jesper Wallstedt.
Few could have seen this coming after Hildeby posted an .878 SV% in six appearances with the Leafs last season, but the game appears to be slowing down for him as he continues to gain experience at the NHL level. His physical attributes are obvious, and he doesn’t give opposing shooters much to look at with his 6’7″ frame, but he has looked far more composed in his movements, his rebound control has been good, and he is tracking the play around him at a very high level.
The hope is that Woll’s injury isn’t serious and he is able to return in short order, but Hildeby’s play has bought them some time and helped them earn some valuable points in the standings. Whether the Leafs ever have both Woll and Stolarz available at the same time this season remains to be seen, but at the very least, Hildeby has proven to be a capable NHL goaltender who the Leafs can turn to rather than running either one of their top two options into the ground.

Notes from the rest of the prospect pool:

  • Easton Cowan has been a bright spot for the Leafs this season, but he and his line had struggled for a handful of games leading up to Monday’s matchup against the Lightning. After three games without a point, Cowan took a drop pass from John Tavares in the first period on Monday night, and though he was trying to get it across the ice to William Nylander in open space, the puck found Morgan Rielly’s stick, and he made a great second effort to open the scoring with his fifth goal of the season. The assist was Cowan’s ninth point in 21 games to start his rookie year.
  • Ben Danford was one of 27 players named to Canada’s selection camp for the upcoming World Juniors on Monday. Canada is expected to include eight defencemen on their roster, and with only nine on the initial camp roster, that means Danford has to beat out just one player for a spot on the team. He is one of just four right-handed shots vying for a spot on Canada’s blue line, but the competition is stiff. Zayne Parekh and Harrison Brunicke have both played NHL games this season and appear to have spots locked down, and Keaton Verhoeff is a projected top-3 pick for the 2026 NHL draft who has starred for the University of North Dakota this season. Working in Danford’s favour is the fact that he offers a bit of a different skill set than those three, and Canada’s management team has been open about their desire to build a team with players who can fill various roles. He certainly isn’t going to take power play minutes away from any of Parekh, Brunicke, or Verhoeff, but Danford can provide shutdown ability at even strength and on the penalty kill, and his willingness to play a physical game could make him an important piece of Canada’s roster.
  • Whether he makes Canada’s roster or not, Danford won’t be the only Leafs prospect vying for a medal at the World Juniors this season. 2024 fourth-round pick Victor Johansson was named to Sweden’s roster last week, and he could be in line for a prominent role. He has spent most of the season playing on loan with IK Oskarshamn in Sweden’s second-tier pro league, and scored his first goal at that level this past week. Through 11 games in the Allsvenskan, Johansson has registered four points while playing mostly third-pair minutes. 2025 second-rounder Tinus Luc Koblar is currently suiting up for his country as Norway takes part in the second division of the World Juniors tournament with an eye on a promotion to the main division of next year’s tournament. Norway has won their first two games of the tournament, with Koblar registering a goal in the opening game against France and adding an assist in Monday’s overtime win against Ukraine.
  • The Kingston Frontenacs played just two games this past week, but Leafs prospect Tyler Hopkins potted a goal in each contest. His goal against Flint on Friday night was a bit of a special one, as it opened the scoring early and sent the teddy bears flying on Kingston’s annual teddy bear toss night. For the season, Hopkins is up to 12 goals and 13 assists in 28 games.
  • It was a quiet week for Miroslav Holinka and the Edmonton Oil Kings as well, but Holinka was able to put together another multi-point outing on Sunday. The Oil Kings fell to the Prince Albert Raiders in overtime, but Holinka tallied a pair of assists to bring him up to 40 points through 27 games this season, good for fourth in the WHL scoring race.
  • 2024 seventh-round pick Sam McCue is becoming one of the most well-travelled players in the OHL. He was dealt from Brantford to Ottawa last week, making the 67s his fifth team in the last three seasons. With an October birthday, McCue is considered an overaged player despite this being just his fourth season in the OHL, and with limited spots available for overaged players, there were only so many teams that could make room for him on their roster. So far this season, McCue has 10 goals and six assists through 26 games.
Statistics from EliteProspects.com

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