‘Scary to see him go down’: Stolarz’s durability a major concern for Maple Leafs

TORONTO — The pad save looked routine. Yet it caused Anthony Stolarz to ditch his mask and wince face down in his crease in agony. 

Toronto Maple Leafs trainer Paul Ayotte raced out on foot to speak with the injured goaltender, who eventually slung one arm over the shoulder of Bo Groulx and another over that of Simon Benoit. They guided the six-foot-three, 243-pound goaltender to the matted corridor.

Stolarz couldn’t put weight on his left leg as he departed what should be his final game of the team’s nightmarish season.

“Honestly, the first thing is you worry for him,” said backup Joseph Woll, forced into action before Wednesday’s 4-0 loss to the Washington Capitals was three minutes old. “It’s kind of scary to see him go down like that. Like, he’s a pretty tough dude.”

“Just tough to watch,” Benoit echoed.

For better or worse, this is the topsy-turvy Anthony Stolarz Toronto Experience.

When available and at his best, the largest Leaf can look like a confident world-beater, all glimmering masks and blockers to the face.

But Stolarz’s long injury history just added another page and further evidence that the 32-year-old goaltender was smart to push for the richest contract extension of his life (four years, $15 million) with then-GM Brad Treliving before the puck dropped on his spotty campaign.

That deal hasn’t even kicked in.

“He’s the one that brought me here,” Stolarz said of Treliving last week, upon the executive’s firing. “I appreciate everything he did for me and my family.”

A mid-season “nerve issue” in his neck sidelined Stolarz for three months. A scary warmup puck off the throat sent him to an Ottawa hospital last month. And now a guy who has already rehabbed from multiple knee surgeries, including one in 2025, is off for another MRI.

“It’s unfortunate,” coach Craig Berube said. “He’s been hurt a few times this year.”

Stolarz positioned himself for his juicy raise by playing a career-high 34 games last season; he was only available for 26 in 2025-26. 

Stolarz’s 16-team no-trade list kicks in on July 1. And while Toronto is believed to be open to trading a veteran goalie to make room for the good ones on the farm, buyers will rightly be skeptical about the athlete’s durability.

Even though Stolarz has outplayed his counterpart, Woll, lately. Woll gave up a career-high seven goals in L.A. Saturday and three on 17 Capitals shots Wednesday, dropping his save percentage to a career-low .901. Woll (15-15-7) will finish with more losses than wins for the first time in his career.

To be fair, Maple Leafs goalies are forced to hold fort behind arguably the most porous defence in the league.

“I mean, for me, it’s just going out there and taking it day by day, doing my business and doing what I can to contribute to this team and this organization,” Stolarz said. 

“At the end of the day, I got a four-year deal. So, for me, it’s finish the year out strong and then go into the summer and train and start getting ready for next year.”

The severity of Stolarz’s latest ailment is unknown, but rehab might need to precede training.

The solution for now is prospect Artur Akhtyamov, who will make his first NHL start Thursday in New York against Peter DeBoer’s Islanders.

Both Woll and third-stringer Dennis Hildeby played Tuesday, and Akhtyamov is hungry.

“Liked him right from camp,” Berube said. “He backed up a couple times this year. He’s got a great personality. He’s played well down there (20-12-4, .903 in the AHL). He’s a competitor, and he’s really got fast reflexes. 

“He’s competitive as hell, man. I mean, I like the kid a lot.”

Thursday’s game will feature two more Marlies callups, as both forward Luke Haymes and defenceman William Villeneuve should make their big-league debuts.

That’s, in part, because Brandon Carlo (lower body) and Dakota Joshua (upper body) also got injured against Washington. Moreover, centre Bo Groulx’s emergency recall has expired, and he must rejoin the Marlies to abide by waiver rules.

We suppose getting a peek at what’s inside the cupboards is a silver lining of sorts. 

But another injury to the injury-prone starting goalie?

As Woll said: “It’s not ideal.”

Fox’s Fast Five

• During warmups, Ovechkin made a point to scoop up a couple of pucks. They landed in the hands of Capitals head equipment manager Brock Myles, who stuffed them in his pocket for safekeeping.

Washington is expecting a swarm of media on Sunday for its final home game of the season, versus Sidney Crosby’s Penguins, and has already announced that the captain will be appearing in their interview room following the matinee.

Yes, Ovechkin says his future is undecided. 

But it sure feels like we’re witnessing the end of an era.

• Licking his chops, Caps coach Spencer Carbery unleashed a monstrous checking line of Tom Wilson, Aliaksei Protas, and younger brother Ilya Protas, who was called up for his NHL debut.

Combined, the forwards stand 19 feet, four inches tall and weigh 700 pounds.

“That’s like 15 of myself,” Rasmus Sandin deadpanned.

Craig Berube quipped that he would have to “suit up” on Wednesday to deal with them.

“I think it’s going to be the heaviest line in the league,” Ovechkin smiled. “So… good luck.”

• Funny seeing Rasmus Sandin, Timothy Liljegren, and David Kämpf all taking morning skate at SBA like old times. The latter two were scratched, but lefty Sandin is skating right side on the top pair with John Carlson gone.

Sandin was recently reminiscing about his Toronto days with his family, who attended a bunch of Leafs games all decked out in blue and white.

“Since I was 10, I’ve been moving around a lot in Sweden and then coming here. Before that, I was in Sault Ste. Marie, and now Washington. So, I think since I was 10 years old, this is the place where I’ve lived the longest in one stretch,” Sandin says.

“I know the city very well. Obviously, I got the Nylanders here, so it’s a special feeling coming back.”

What happened to all those Maple Leafs sweaters and hats?

“Keep that to ourselves,” he smiles coyly. “Maybe we tossed them, maybe we didn’t. I mean, they haven’t been worn since, I’ll tell you that.”

• With their 4-3 win over Utica, the Toronto Marlies qualified for the playoffs for a fourth consecutive spring. 

Leafs rookie Easton Cowan is eligible to rejoin them for the post-season. He should.

• Scott Laughton describes Saturday’s win over the Maple Leafs as one of the worst games of his career. Facing his former team after having them over to his place on the beach felt “weird,” and too soon after getting traded to L.A. less than a month prior.

When Laughton went after a chirping Matthew Knies after a Leafs power-play goal that night, it raised eyebrows.

“Kniesy ain’t paying for anything, I’ll tell you that right now. He ain’t the guy paying for anything,” Laughton chuckled, during an interview with a Toronto radio station. 

“Nah, he didn’t even say anything bad, but that was the second power-play goal they scored. I was on for both, so I was a little upset. Gave him a light cross-check. I thought it was a weaker call, but definitely not the smartest on my part.”

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