Jun 14, 2019
Maple Leafs shopping G Sparks
The Toronto Maple Leafs are quietly shopping backup goaltender Garret Sparks, according to TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun.
TSN.ca Staff
The Toronto Maple Leafs are quietly shopping backup goaltender Garret Sparks, according to TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun.
The 25-year-old posted a 8-9-1 record with a 3.15 goals-against average and a 0.902 save percentage over 20 games as a backup behind Frederik Andersen in 2018-19 with the Leafs.
Sparks left the team ahead of their playoff run to focus on his own play with goalie coaches Steve Briere and Jon Elkin, leaving Michael Hutchinson to serve as the Leafs backup in their first-round playoff series against the Boston Bruins.
“I’m in agreement that I haven’t played to the degree we all know I can play,” Sparks said in April. “Extra work isn’t a bad thing. They just [told me] Hutch would be up for a little bit and it was on me to go do some work. It’s all part of being a pro.”
Sparks, the AHL's goaltender of the year last season who was drafted by the Leafs in 2011 (Round 7, No. 190 overall), has one year left on his current contract with a cap hit of $750,000.