The Tampa Bay Lightning front office didn’t enter this offseason with the intention of adding another goalie to the organization's NHL depth chart.
When young Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Dennis Hildeby became available, however, Lightning general manager and vice president of hockey operations Julien BriseBois was quick to pull the trigger.
Tampa Bay acquired the 24-year-old netminder in a July 1 trade along with a pair of draft picks in exchange for forward Nick Paul. Hildeby now has a chance to earn a full-time NHL job for the first time in his career this season.
“When we found out he was available we said, ‘Okay, that's something that's worth exploring’ because he's 24 and did really well this year at the NHL level, has a track record of doing really well at the NHL level, has size, has a profile of goaltender that (goalie coach) Frantz Jean really appreciates,” BriseBois said.
“We just think he's ready to be an NHL backup, and then you factor in that he's only going to get better and he's on a great contract for the next two years, there’s a lot of value there.”
Hildeby appeared in a career-high 20 games for Toronto last season, posting a 5-7-4 record with a .914 save percentage and 2.86 goals against average. The native of Jarfalla, Sweden finished with the best save percentage and goals against average of any Maple Leafs goalie.
Toronto’s fourth-round pick at the 2022 NHL Draft carries an 8-10-4 career NHL record and .906 career save percentage after also starting six NHL games in 2024-25.
“When that season ended, I got a recipe for where I had to improve and I settled in a little more this year,” Hildeby said of his NHL experience. “I felt a little calmer, which definitely helped this season.”
Hildeby stands at a sturdy 6-foot-7 and relies on his size. Whenever it’s his turn in net, he tries to mix a deep focus with an aggressive play style.
“First of all it’s the mental game of deep breaths and enjoying the moment. It's the best league in the world, so it's always a privilege playing there,” he said. “My size is something I have very much to my advantage, and it’s something I want to always use to my advantage while still not becoming this back-in goalie. I still want to have an aggressive approach with the mindset of being very big.”
Hildeby carries a 47-29-16 record across 96 American Hockey League showings and a .906 save percentage. He went 10-8-5 in the AHL last season before appearing in three games for the Toronto Marlies during the 2026 Calder Cup Playoffs, going 1-1 with a league-best .921 save percentage and 2.17 goals against average.
Tampa Bay’s scouts have followed Hildeby’s AHL career closely, and they got to see the NHL translation this past winter when he posted his first career shutout with a 29-save, 2-0 win against the Lightning on Dec. 8.
“The first of anything is always memorable and it was a great night, especially against a team like Tampa,” Hildeby said. “You knew going into that game it was going to be very tough. That was super exciting. We played a very good game, and it went my way.”
Hildeby will now aim for more empty scoresheets as a Bolt and is signed for the next two seasons on an NHL minimum contract. He will be a restricted free agent when that deal expires in 2028.
He’s happy he doesn’t have to worry about facing Tampa Bay scoring chances anymore.
That relief was one initial thought after learning he was traded to Tampa Bay, along with the realization that he could soon share a locker room with Lightning goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy.
“To meet him, who’s been a big role model for me growing up, that was one of the first things I thought about,” Hildeby said. “Obviously it’s a very successful team with a lot of extremely good players, so it’s easy to be excited.”
His favorite goalie as a child was fellow Swede Henrik Lundqvist, and then Vasilevskiy took the top spot once Lundqvist retired.
“He became my new goalie that I loved to watch. There’s so many goalies out there that I watch. You can learn things from everyone, and they're all in the NHL for a reason. But yeah, Vasy is definitely up there as one of my favorites.”
Hildeby has already begun offseason work and is in Sweden preparing for his first full NHL campaign and his first season in Tampa.
He’s just getting started.
“In a new environment I’ll have a lot of new stuff to learn and a lot of new people to meet,” he said. “But when it comes to my game I just want to keep improving and not overcomplicate things here. I want to just keep building where I left off.”
