Anthony Stolarz skates in workout, Berube doubts he’ll travel for Game 6 vs. Panthers

Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz returned to the ice for an individual workout Thursday, but it doesn’t appear likely that he’ll play in Game 6 against the Florida Panthers.

“I doubt it,” Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube said, when asked if Stolarz would travel to Florida for Game 6, via TSN’s Mark Masters.

Joseph Woll will likely start Game 6 for the Maple Leafs. Woll has started every game since Stolarz suffered an injury in Game 1, when Panthers forward Sam Bennett connected with his head. Toronto is on the brink of elimination, following a 6-1 loss in Game 5 on Wednesday.

Woll was excellent in Game 4, standing out as the Leafs’ best player by far. Although Woll wasn’t to blame in Game 5, he was eventually pulled, with Matt Murray taking over the net, when A.J. Greer scored the Panthers’ fifth goal of the game. Woll allowed five goals on 26 shots.

Toronto did not hold a formal practice Thursday as the team is slated to travel. It will need a full regroup following one of the most embarrassing losses of the decade, with their season on the line Friday night.

“There were a lot of mistakes,” Berube said. “For me, mistakes happen in games, but it’s the way they happened tonight. It’s disappointing, more than anything. We’ll be better next game, but it’s just disappointing for all of us, the way we came out in the first period and the way we played. That’s the biggest thing I take out of the whole game.”

Stolarz and Woll operated out of a true tandem for most of the regular season, before the former closed out the regular season with eight consecutive wins to secure the playoff starter’s role. Toronto needs two consecutive wins, and Woll will need to be at his best to unseat the defending champions.