Maple Leafs place Ilya Samsonov on waivers.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have finally done it.

According to a report from National Hockey League insider Elliotte Friedman, Maple Leafs goaltender Ilya Samsonov has been placed on waivers on Sunday.

The move comes after a series of catastrophic performances from Samsonov in goal, all of which culminated in perhaps his ugliest loss of the season at the hands of the Columbus Blue Jackets last week. In that game Samsonov allowed 6 goals on just 21 shots, finishing the game with a .714 save percentage and largely cost the Maple Leafs the win on that night.

It is hard to imagine a road to redemption for Samsonov here given just how much confidence his head coach appears to have lost in him, but perhaps a conditioning stint in the American Hockey League with the Toronto Marlies will help rejuvenate the Russian netminder.

In theory a rival team in the NHL could put in a claim for Samsonov but given the way he has played this season that seems extremely unlikely. It's also important to note that Samsonov won't come cheap at a cap hit of $3.55 million this season on the 1 year deal he signed earlier this summer. That combined with Samsonov's raw stats, a 3.94 goals against average and a .862 save percentage, will make him an unappealing target on the waiver wire.