DETROIT — Anthony Stolarz was arguably the Toronto Maple Leafs most valuable player on Saturday following a 6-3 loss to the Detroit Red Wings.
While his save percentage won't necessarily present numbers that show well, the goaltender had to stand on his head for some of the first and the entire second period against a Detroit Red Wings team that was angry coming off an embarrassing loss in their season opener.
Stolarz was not only busy, but the Red Wings crashed the goaltender several times, leading the goaltender to have a discussion about the lack of penalty calls and an exchange with Dylan Larkin here the goalie hacked at the Detroit star in retaliation.
After the game, Stolarz was asked about what went wrong in addition to several other issues in the game.
"We stopped getting pucks in deep. Stopped hunting them on the forecheck, and we kind of just sat back and kind of let them walk all over us," Stolarz said. "I think we have to you look at that first period, you know, we were all over them, two goals, a little high and then, you know, their team after their first game, and I imagine that period got reamed out, so we knew that they were going to be coming."
Did you see more backdoor stuff from Detroit at your net?
"Yeah, I mean, they have some offensive skills, so they're going to try to work in the zone and try to do some interchanges, some crisscrosses, and just try to find those seams that those guys are sitting in those quiet areas."
Frustrating that Detroit was able to crash the next consistently?
"I mean, for me, it's something I kind of get used to. I mean, I'm 6'6", so teams are going to want to crash me and run me because they know I can see the puck and I can see over them. So it's just about battling. That's, I think, one of my best traits is just going out there and competing when ithe puck's in the blue paint there. So you've got to respect what they're doing. They're trying to play hard, play a hard-nosed game, and it's up to me and everyone else when the puck's there and loose in front, just battle."
"There were stretches there where they had a lot of zone time. How exhausting was tonight's game?
"It was, you know, you get a couple shifts there, but we had a couple shifts where we were heading down, so, you know, the TV timeouts helped. But, at the end of the day, it's a lesson for us. We have to come to play every night, and it doesn't matter who you're playing. You know, teams in this league are good, and anyone can beat anyone at any given night."
Hopefully he's okay, but how did the loss of Stephen Lorentz effect you guys?
I" saw him walking around the locker room there, So hopefully everything's good. But, you know, the veteran presence he brings, the way he plays, you know, you can definitely see that, you know, that line, the way they've been clicking so far to start the year. So hopefully it's nothing serious and he's back out there with us."
Did being busy early get you dialed into the game?
"I'm a pretty fiery guy, so I don't mind it when he gets a little physical. It kind of creates a little jam for myself, so I just try to harness that as best as I can and just go out there and compete and battle."
As a goalie what goes through your mind when the puck is on Patrick Kane's stick?
"You've got to expect the unexpected. He's someone who pulls up and he hits the late guys, hits seams, and he's somebody who's just on the last goal who can get open, find, and create chances for himself."
Is it an advantage to meet the same opponent again next game?
"Yeah, for sure. I think this is going to leave a bad taste in everyone's mouth. And going back home, 2 o'clock game on Thanksgiving, I think the fans will be riled up. And I think we're going to have to match that intensity. And we're going to want to put forth a good effort."
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