TORONTO — Five starts into Anthony Stolarz‘s tenure as a Toronto Maple Leaf, we’re not sure which will be more difficult: Taking his net or finding the back of it.
Just ask 40-goal man Jake Guentzel how dialled in the goaltender is to begin the season, Stolarz’s first true shot at playing more games than his tandem mate.
With the Tampa Bay Lightning zipping the puck around on a full two-minute, two-man advantage — a golden opportunity to claw back into Monday’s divisional tilt — Guentzel had a net-front tap-in wiped away when Stolarz engaged “desperation mode” (his phrase) and sprawled his glove backward to swipe a sure thing off the goal line.
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The normally subdued Scotiabank Arena throng erupted at the save, then ejected out of its seats once again in appreciation of their best penalty-killer once the two minutes passed without an enemy strike.
“It’s exciting. Kinda swings momentum our way. They have a 5-on-3, an opportunity to swing and kinda change things,” Stolarz smiled, after securing a 5-2 home win.
“By the crowd getting into it, I think it shattered them a little bit and just allowed us to kill it off.”
The early Stolarz experience — 1.83 goals against, .938 save percentage — has been as consistent as it is contagious, and the 30-year-old career backup is rapidly but calmly earning the trust of his coach, his teammates, and the fan base.
“You saw it in the crowd. Everyone’s up for it, our whole bench. You know, that’s a pretty incredible save. He kept us in the game the whole night,” said Matthew Knies, who sniped a five-hole insurance goal shortly after the critical kill.
“We didn’t do too well staying out of the box and gave them a 5-on-3, and they got a lot of chances, but he stood his ground and played well.”
No doubt, Stolarz’s 32-save star turn bottled up the Lightning.
But have the Maple Leafs caught lightning in a bottle?
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When GM Brad Treliving lost out (to New Jersey) on the Jacob Markstrom trade and went hunting for a goaltender in this past summer’s thin UFA market, he sought out a proven but affordable 1B. An experienced goalie with decent numbers but one who wouldn’t stress his tight budget.
Fresh off a Stanley Cup championship backing up workhorse Sergei Bobrovsky, Stolarz came in at a $2.5-million AAV, which would slide nicely under the forthcoming raise for Joseph Woll ($3.67 million).
Sure, it was the drafted-and-developed Woll who was circled as Toronto’s opening-night starter and No. 1 frontrunner.
But Stolarz took Treliving’s offer largely because he spotted an opportunity to appear in more NHL games than ever (previous high: 28).
“It was probably the No. 1 thing for me,” Stolarz says. “You obviously play this game to play games and get out there. And with this team, the talent obviously speaks for itself. So, for me, it was a pretty easy decision.”
The moment Woll pulled up with an injured groin in pre-season and Stolarz subbed in, allowing just one goal on his first-ever season-opener, that decision has looked like a smart one — for the pleased GM and the goalie with a mask as glimmering as his advanced stats.
While it would be tempting to glance at Stolarz’s goals saved above expected (4.4 and climbing), his confidence playing the puck (his smart power-play stretch pass helped create an Auston Matthews goal Monday) or his positionally sound six-foot-six presence and wonder if he can start 50, no one on the Leafs wants to get carried away over two weeks’ work.
No matter how well they’ve gone for the Edison, N.J., native.
“I said at the beginning of the year: Both goalies are going to see more net than they have in the past. I’ll just leave it at that,” coach Craig Berube said, pumping the brakes on Stolarz Mania.
In Anaheim (John Gibson) and Florida (Bobrovsky), Stolarz’s ambition was blocked by a workhorse with pedigree. That’s not the case today.
Another reason for skepticism over the signing would be that, in Florida, Stolarz benefitted by playing behind one of the stingiest teams in hockey.
Well, thanks to Berube’s structure and the blueline additions of Chris Tanev and Oliver Ekman-Larsson, the Leafs are shaping into a top-five defensive outfit themselves.
Of course, Stolarz himself has had a hand in that.
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“I just try to live in the moment and just try to enjoy each and every day. It’s a privilege to play in this league, and we have such a good group here that it makes it a lot of fun to come to the rink every day. You can obviously see the skill, the talent here, and our mission is to do a lot of big things this year. I think games like tonight are nice stepping stone in the right direction,” Stolarz said.
“It’s been a lot of fun. I’m enjoying myself so far. It’s been extremely welcoming — the guys, the city, the community. So, I’m looking forward to a lot more going forward.”
More starts, more jaw-dropping saves, and most importantly, more wins.
Fox’s Fast Five
• Think Toronto’s star-studded power-play has been slow to rev?
Consider the Lightning PP going 1-for-16 in its past four games, dropping its overall success rate to 13.6 per cent (27th in the league).
We’re talking about a franchise that has been operating the NHL’s second-best power-play since 2001-02.
“Everyone knows who we lost last year,” Brandon Hagel told a team reporter. “So, this is what’s going to happen throughout the year.”
•When was the last time the Maple Leafs’ fourth line (a) had this much trust and (b) deserved this much trust?
Steven Lorentz and David Kämpf are staples. But it doesn’t matter if the other winger is Ryan Reaves, Bobby McMann or Pontus Holmberg. Everyone knows the assignment.
“I don’t have a problem putting them out against anybody,” Berube says. “They’re a hounding line.”
• Perhaps it’s simply a function of being the only game on the schedule, but Scotiabank Arena’s press box was crowded with 23 teams bringing scouts for this one. The Dallas Stars, Winnipeg Jets and Vegas Golden Knights all reserved multiple seats.
Stars GM Jim Nill has taken in a couple Leafs games in-person during this homestand, and we know a Toronto cap crunch lies around the corner with Jani Hakanpää, Connor Dewar, and Calle Järnkrok eligible to come off LTIR next month.
(Or maybe Nill, whose team is in Buffalo Tuesday, simply enjoys watching hockey.)
• Meanwhile on the farm… the Toronto Marlies have leapt to a torrid 5-0 start.
William’s younger brother, Alex Nylander, is averaging a goal per game (5-1–6) and has already ripped a team-high 22 shots on net. He’s currently on an AHL-only contract but signed that with hopes of earning an NHL deal and skating with his brother.
• A clairvoyant John Tavares — hours before he set up the goal that chased the all-world Andrei Vasilevskiy out of Toronto — was amped for the challenge.
“For us, you gotta enjoy that. You gotta relish that,” Tavares said. “You’re talking about the most proven goalie in the league, probably.”
