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Maple Leafs players reveal honest opinions of Anthony Stolarz

Originally posted on NHL on ClutchPoints
By Michael Whitaker | Last updated Oct 9, 2024 6:40 PM ET

The Toronto Maple Leafs faced early adversity as they began the 2024-25 NHL season, with the announcement that goaltender Joseph Woll has been placed on Injured Reserve and will miss at least the first three games.

In his absence, the Leafs will rely on Anthony Stolarz, who is entering his first year with the team after signing a multi-year contract in the offseason. And while it’s not the most ideal of situations, Stolarz’s teammates are expressing full confidence in his abilities to man the crease while Woll recovers, via TSN.

“Really, really, really good goalie,” said Max Pacioretty, another first-year member of the Leafs. “I don’t think I scored a single goal on him in like the first four or five practices. It was starting to get me pretty upset. He’s massive in there.”

“I know it’s easy to say, ‘He’s big,’ but sometimes big goalies have holes – whether it’s holes by their feet or whatnot,” Pacioretty continued. “He is just a very big presence in the net. It’s hard to see any net when he’s in there.”

He’s always ready when called upon,” explained Steven Lorentz, who was a teammate of Stolarz with the Florida Panthers. “He’s done that his whole career and I have the most confidence in him.”

Stolarz and the Leafs will begin the regular season on Wednesday night with a matchup against the rival Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre in downtown Montreal.

Anthony Stolarz enters his first season with the Leafs

oronto Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz (41) makes a save in the second period against the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena. Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

A native of Edison, New Jersey, Stolarz was selected with the 45th overall pick by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 2012 NHL Draft. He would play the first several years of his career within the organization before being traded to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for Cam Talbot in 2019.

Eventually, he would sign a free-agent contract with the Anaheim Ducks. After playing the majority of his first two seasons in the organization with their American Hockey League affiliate, he would appear in 28 and 19 games respectively over the next two years with the Ducks.

He joined the Florida Panthers to back up Sergei Bobrovsky for the 2023-24 season. He amassed a record of 16-7-2 with a solid 2.03 goals-against average and.925 save percentage.

His deal with the Leafs that he signed over the summer is for two years with an AAV of $2.5 million.

This article first appeared on NHL on ClutchPoints and was syndicated with permission.

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