Nearly two months after a vague injury sidelined him in November, Anthony Stolarz has finally resumed skating, though his path back to the crease remains a work in progress.
There is finally a positive development regarding the health of the Toronto Maple Leafs' goaltending corps. Anthony Stolarz took the ice Wednesday for the first time since sustaining an upper-body injury on Nov. 11 against the Boston Bruins. A representative from the Toronto Maple Leafs confirmed the news following head coach Craig Berube’s media availability.
The exact details of Stolarz’s injury remain a mystery. He was pulled during the first intermission of a 5-3 loss to the Bruins after allowing three goals on 11 shots over 20 minutes of play. While Berube did not initially believe the ailment was serious, Stolarz’s seven-week absence lasted significantly longer than many expected.
Stolarz carried a heavy workload to start the season while fellow goaltender Joseph Woll was away dealing with a personal matter. During that span, Stolarz posted a 6-5-1 record but struggled to replicate the elite success he enjoyed with the Leafs last season.
His current .884 save percentage is a notable decline from the .926 mark he maintained over 34 games in 2024-25—a performance that earned the 31-year-old netminder a four-year, $15 million extension. Despite his return to the ice, it remains unclear how soon he will be ready to rejoin the active lineup. Fortunately, there is no immediate need to rush the oft-injured goaltender back, as Woll and Dennis Hildeby performed well throughout December.
The Maple Leafs have struggled to find consistency this season and currently sit outside of a playoff spot with an 18-15-5 record. Stolarz was the first player to publicly sound the alarm regarding the team's decline in play compared to last season, when they finished first in the Atlantic Division.
Following a 4-3 loss to the Seattle Kraken on Oct. 19, Stolarz was blunt about the team's lack of physical presence:
“I think we gotta start going in the cage a little harder, make it harder for their goalies. You know, it’s not fun. I don’t like having 225-pound guys laying on me. So, you know, hopefully we learn a lesson here”.
While his assessment of the team’s play was largely accurate, Stolarz received some flak for making his criticisms so public. The team has shown signs of a turnaround recently, winning three of their last four games, though it may still be some time before Stolarz returns to game action to help the push for a playoff spot.