Woll to ‘miss some time’ for Maple Leafs with injury

OTTAWA — Joseph Woll will “miss some time” after he sustained an apparent leg injury in the third period of a 4-3 win against the Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre on Thursday.

“It’s unfortunate, right?” Toronto coach Sheldon Keefe said. “He’s been playing so well. He was building such great momentum here on his season and his career. It’s a setback here now.”

Woll, who made 29 saves, needed to be helped off the ice at 10:22 after going down in his butterfly to save a soft backhand shot from Senators forward Rourke Chartier. Keefe did not have a diagnosis or specific timeline for the goalie after the game.

“It’s brutal,” Maple Leafs forward Mitchell Marner said. “You don’t wish that upon anyone. So, hopefully when news comes back it’s somewhat positive. But like I just spoke on, a couple massive saves from [Woll] tonight and he’s been doing it all year for us.”

The 25-year-old has started the majority of Toronto’s games this season, is 8-5-1 with a .916 save percentage in 15 games (13 starts).

“He was outstanding obviously tonight,” Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly said of Woll. “He’s been great every time he’s been in the net for us. So, when you’ve got a young guy like that who’s confident and playing as well as he is, that’s a good sign for our team.”

Martin Jones, who was recalled on an emergency basis Wednesday from the Toronto Marlies of the American Hockey League, made nine saves in relief and was credited with the win.

“It was tough to watch, obviously,” Jones said of Woll’s injury. “You don’t want to see that. Just tried to get my head in the game and get ready to go.”

Jones, who signed a one-year, $875,000 contract with the Maple Leafs on Aug. 9, cleared waivers Oct. 9. He is 2-1-1 with an .870 save percentage in five AHL games this season.

He is 225-163-35 with a 2.71 GAA and .905 save percentage in 444 games (429 starts) with the Los Angeles Kings, San Jose Sharks, Philadelphia Flyers and Seattle Kraken.

“The confidence and faith is high [in Jones],” Keefe said. “He’s a veteran goalie, so a situation like tonight, that wouldn’t rattle him. He’s ready. He’s been a tremendous teammate when he’s been here and tremendous when he’s been down with the Marlies. He’s handled this whole situation incredibly well. That’s why you sign veteran depth. We were fortunate when he got through waivers and remained part of our organization. It’s for situations like this.”

Ilya Samsonov, who has missed two consecutive games with an illness, is close to returning. He is 4-1-3 with an .878 save percentage in 10 games this season.

Samsonov took the morning skate, but was “somewhat unavailable” Thursday, Keefe said.