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Joseph Woll, Toronto Maple Leafs (Photo by Julian Avram/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Maple Leafs Fans Should Feel Confident in Woll

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers
By Rupert McDonald | Last updated May 7, 2025 3:00 PM ET

The Toronto Maple Leafs have a 1-0 series lead over the Florida Panthers after Game 1 of their second-round series, but it came at a cost. During the second period, Sam Bennett collided with goaltender Anthony Stolarz, knocking the 32-year-old out of the game. He won’t be starting in Game 2, which is a tough blow for a Maple Leafs team that has been playing well.

Stolarz was superb for the Maple Leafs this season. Though he was limited to 34 games due to injury, he was excellent between the pipes, posting a 2.14 goals-against average (GAA), a .926 save percentage (SV%) and a 21-8-3 record. He will be missed in his absence.

With Stolarz out, the Maple Leafs will turn to Joseph Woll for Game 2 and perhaps beyond. It’s never ideal to have to go with your backup goaltender in the playoffs, and it’s a tall task for Woll, who is inexperienced with just 79 career regular-season games under his belt. That said, Maple Leafs fans should be feeling very confident that the 26-year-old can get the job done.

Woll Has Stepped Up in the Playoffs Before

Woll has appeared in the playoffs for the Maple Leafs before. First in 2023, when he stepped into action during a second-round series that also happened to be against the Panthers, stepping in for an injured Ilya Samsonov. He performed admirably in difficult circumstances, helping lead the Maple Leafs to their only win of the series while putting up a 2.43 GAA and a .915 SV% in four games.

While that showing was impressive, it was in last year’s playoffs that Woll began to make a name for himself. This time, he got the call in Round 1 due to Samsonov’s early struggles, and willed his team back into the series versus the Boston Bruins, winning both of his starts while putting up an absurd 0.86 GAA paired with a .964 SV%.

Unfortunately for both Woll and the Maple Leafs, an injury kept him out of Game 7, which they lost 2-1 in overtime. Had Woll been able to start, maybe it would have been the Maple Leafs moving on to the second round for what would have been the second-straight year.

Though Woll’s performance in Game 1 on Monday, after being called upon in the second period, was shaky, he held on to help the Maple Leafs pick up a 5-4 victory. His performance may not have instilled the most confidence from the fan base, though they weren’t easy circumstances for him.

Not only did Woll have to see his teammate and goaltending partner leave under scary conditions, but coming in partway through a game, especially in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, is no easy feat. Having a few days between games to reset and know he’s getting the start should allow him to be much more confident and composed between the pipes in Game 2.

Woll Isn’t Just Any Backup

What’s important to note about Woll is that he wasn’t expected to be the Maple Leafs’ backup entering the season. He and Stolarz were expected to work in a tandem role, and the former ended up playing more games due, in large part, to Stolarz’s injury. On top of that, he’s not only experienced playoff hockey before, but has thrived in it. Maple Leafs fans, while rightfully upset and worried over Stolarz’s injury, should feel confident that the team can continue to get things done with Woll in the crease.