Ilya Samsonov learns his fate on Monday.

The Toronto Maple Leafs made the difficult decision of waiving goaltender Ilya Samsonov on Sunday, a decision that the team reportedly was hoping to avoid. Unfortunately the poor play of Samsonov left the Maple Leafs and general manager Brad Treliving with relatively little choice and after today's results it would appear to have been the right one.

According to National Hockey League insider Chris Johnston, no team in the NHL has chosen to submit a claim for Samsonov and therefore the 26 year old Russian netminder has cleared the waiver process.

There was never real worry of Samsonov getting claimed, not only due to the fact that the Maple Leafs would likely welcome the cap relief but also due to the fact that he has simply played so poorly this season. Any team looking to take a gamble on Samsonov would have had to take on his cap hit of $3.55 million, a hefty price tag for a goaltender with a 3.94 goals against average and a .862 save percentage over 15 games this season.

The Maple Leafs are now free to demote Samsonov down to the American Hockey League where he would join the Marlies, although there has been some indication that the Maple Leafs may take their time with Samsonov before thrusting him into an AHL game.

Stay tuned for more on this rapidly developing story.