Gruden confirms Hildeby to start Game 1 against top-seeded Laval Rackers

Dennis Hildeby turned one strong night into the most important start of Toronto’s spring. John Gruden confirmed the 6-foot-7 Swedish goalie will open Game 1 against the top-seeded Laval Rocket on Wednesday night, a choice that puts the Marlies in the hands of the netminder who closed out Rochester with 29 saves on 31 shots.

That Game 3 performance was the difference in Toronto’s first-round escape, a 4-2 win over the Americans that ended the series 2-1 and sent the Marlies into the North Division semifinal with a goalie conversation already settled. Toronto used Artur Akhtyamov in the first two games against Rochester, then turned to Hildeby for the clincher. Gruden’s decision to stay with him now says Game 1 is being treated as the series’ pressure point, not just a formality against a rested division winner.

It is the right read on the matchup. Laval finished first in the North Division and earned a bye into the second round, while Toronto had to fight through three games just to get here after finishing the regular season 36-26-5-5 and missing an automatic playoff berth by one point. Under the AHL playoff format, home-ice advantage goes to the club with more regular-season points, which gives Laval the first two games in Quebec and the chance to force Toronto into a chase from the opening faceoff.

Hildeby is the kind of goalie who can change that script. The 2022 fourth-round pick of the Toronto Maple Leafs, selected 122nd overall, is listed at 6-foot-7 and had NHL-season numbers of 20 games played, a 2.86 goals-against average and a .914 save percentage in 2025-26. For Toronto, that frame matters because Laval is built to make the crease feel crowded, especially early in a series when pucks get to the blue paint through traffic and scrambles.

The Marlies also have one recent clue that should travel with them into Game 1: they beat Laval twice in the final regular-season weekend, including a 4-2 win on April 19 and another victory on April 20. That does not erase Laval’s bye or its top seed, but it does give Toronto a recent read on a team it will see Wednesday at 7 p.m. EDT in Laval, then again Friday, May 1, before the series shifts to Toronto for Games 3 and 4 on Sunday, May 3, and Tuesday, May 5.

If Toronto is going to push this series off script, Hildeby has to win the saves that matter most: the first shot after a turnover, the rebound in the crease, and the heavy traffic chance that turns a good period into a lost one. Gruden has made his call. Now the series starts with whether Hildeby can make it stick.