Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz. Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images

Maple Leafs, Anthony Stolarz agree to four-year extension

Originally posted on Pro Hockey Rumors | By Ethan Hetu | Last updated Sep 28, 2025 2:03 PM ET

It was previously reported that Anthony Stolarz and the Toronto Maple Leafs were getting very close to an extension, and now ESPN’s Kevin Weekes and The Athletic’s Chris Johnston have reported that the parties have come to an agreement on a four-year, $3.75M AAV contract extension. According to Weekes, the contract is “largely signing bonus money” although no firm breakdown has been reported at this time.

Two days ago, it was reported that Stolarz and his camp, led by RSG Hockey’s Allain Roy, were eyeing recent contracts signed by Karel Vejmelka and Kevin Lankinen as potential comparables – deals that each carry a five-year term and an AAV of at least $4.5M. The contract reported Sunday isn’t quite as lucrative as those deals, although the fact that it is, per Weekes, heavy in signing bonuses does help bridge the gap.

The path to this contract has been an odd one for Stolarz, who appears to have emerged as a starting-caliber netminder at the age of 31. Five years ago, Stolarz was an AHL starter in the Anaheim Ducks organization, and he established himself as an NHL backup there. He signed with the Florida Panthers for 2023-24 to be Sergei Bobrovsky’s backup, and ended up putting forth a brilliant .925 save percentage and 2.03 goals-against average in 27 games.

That performance in Florida, which ended with Stolarz watching from the bench as the Panthers won their first-ever Stanley Cup championship, earned the netminder a two-year, $2.5M AAV deal to join the Maple Leafs in a tandem with Joseph Woll. Although Woll started more games in 2024-25, Stolarz was the superior of the two netminders, playing to an excellent .926 save percentage and 21-8-3 record across 34 games.

While he hasn’t been tested in a heavy workload just yet, Stolarz has posted some of the league’s best numbers across the last two seasons. It’s no easy task to sustain such brilliance across a heavier diet of starts, but Stolarz certainly has the talent to do it. If he can end up taking a larger role in the crease in Toronto, perhaps playing something closer to a standard starting netminder’s number of games, he could easily provide an immense amount of surplus value to Toronto over the course of this contract.

The last time Stolarz played in more than 40 games was for the 2015-16 Lehigh Valley Phantoms. So there is some risk to this contract. But that level of risk is likely wholly acceptable to Toronto given Stolarz’s brilliance over the last two years. The odds he provides surplus value appear to greatly outweigh the odds he underperforms this modest cap hit.

The key for the Maple Leafs will, unsurprisingly, be the playoffs: Stolarz led Toronto to a first-round victory over the Ottawa Senators, but an injury cost him the chance to compete in the second round. If he can find a way to be a reliable, go-to starter in playoff situations, this would be a home run of a contract for the Maple Leafs.

This article first appeared on Pro Hockey Rumors and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: