'His kids, I'm not sure': Anthony Stolarz fine after taking shot in uncomfortable spot during practice
Stolarz went down during Thursday's practice in Fort Lauderdale, but his coach thinks he'll be okay
The Florida Panthers took the ice for practice on Thursday, still unsure of who or when they’ll play next.
During practice, Panthers goaltender Anthony Stolarz went down with an apparent injury.
It came during rush drills, as he slid from his right to his left to make a save at the side of the net.
Stolarz remained down on the ice for about a minute before gingerly skating to the boards, where he stayed for several minutes while chatting with Panthers goalie coach Robb Tallas.
As practice continued, Stolarz stayed on the bench, stretching and talking to Tallas and his teammates.
Nobody seemed overly concerned, with even a few smiles visible from across the ice where the media was watching.
About 20 minutes after the injury, Stolarz skated back on the ice and rejoined the team in regular drills.
He appeared to have no issues with his lateral movements or strength when pushing off, and finished practice without any additional issues.
Afterward, Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice was asked about what happened to his goaltender.
He started to say the word contusion but couldn’t finish without laughing.
“He’ll be alright,” Maurice said through a grin. “His kids, I’m not sure, but he’ll be alright.”
While the Panthers have yet to call upon Stolarz during the playoffs, he was one of the best goaltenders in the NHL during the regular season, posting a 2.03 goals against average and .925 save percentage over 27 appearances.
Having that kind of insurance policy behind Sergei Bobrovsky is paramount, but that goes up exponentially during the postseason.
As the Panthers have experienced over their recent playoff expeditions, depth is a crucial element to reaching the mountaintop.
“When you look and everybody is around the goalie, that’s a bad one,” Maurice said. “But when you see almost all the guys came down, and two of them are laughing so everybody knows what happened, then they all have to come down and have something to say.
“We had to stop the drill until everyone had something to say to Stolie, and then we were able to go again.”
Injury crisis averted.
The Panthers will be back on the ice at the Baptist Health IcePlex in Fort Lauderdale on Friday, as they await a second round opponent.
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