On a Tuesday, when the heat was on their underwhelming stars to show up, the visiting Blackhawks missing Connor Bedard and the feel-good atmosphere of a Joe Bowen retirement salute to start with, they were two and a half periods into laying a double-yolk egg in front of 18,568 fans.

With Woll and Stolarz out, and Hildeby forced to start on Saturday, the Maple Leafs recalled Artur Akhtyamov after placing Woll on injured reserve. Berube made clear that Hildeby will carry the load until Woll resumes skating, which is reasonable considering Akhtyamov has yet to make his NHL debut.

With Bobby McMann returning from suspension, the Leafs must decide if Nylander's instant chemistry on the third line is worth keeping together.