VANCOUVER - The crease conversation can wait. Anthony Stolarz is getting the net Saturday against the Vancouver Canucks, and Maple Leafs coach Jim Hiller made it clear there was never really a choice to make.
“There was no decision,” Hiller said after practice at UBC Thunderbird Arena. “He was scheduled to play.”
Stolarz comes in with a 4-1-0 record and a .907 save percentage in five appearances, while Sergei Bobrovsky, the summer signing expected to be the primary option, sits at 3-5-2 with an .885 save percentage. Bobrovsky has taken heat for recent goals against, including the 5-4 loss in Seattle.
Stolarz said he sees the situation through a goalie’s lens, not a panic button.
“At the end of the day, he’s probably the most battle-tested goalie in the NHL. His resume speaks for itself,” Stolarz said.
“It’s a part of the game. Look at me, three, four games ago against Utah.
You’re going to have those games. We’re all human.
If you play a perfect 84 games you’d be 84-0.”
He was referring to his own rough night in a 5-4 loss to the Utah Mammoth on Oct. 13, when he allowed five goals. After that game, Stolarz said he “wanted two or three of those back” and felt he put his team in a difficult spot. Bobrovsky’s outing against Seattle carried a similar shape, ending in a 5-4 regulation loss.
Stolarz, who shared a room with Bobrovsky during their 2024 Stanley Cup run, said the early-season rhythm can be tricky, especially with a shorter preseason and a compressed schedule. But he also stressed the built-in advantage goalies have: another start is always around the corner.
“The glorious thing is, you get to bounce back the next game, especially as a goalie. We’ve all been there before.”
That bounce-back idea fits Stolarz’s own recent stretch. After the Utah game, he responded well, and he said the confidence has stayed with him despite the injury issues that have marked his career.
“I feel good. I’m a pretty confident guy.
I think I belong in this league. Especially for a goaltender, it’s just all about mental.
We all can stop the puck. It’s about feeling it in your own head and going out there and play.
When I get a little feisty in the crease, that kind of fires me up.”
Hiller has continued to treat the tandem as a strength and has not signaled any change from the planned rotation. For now, the schedule says Stolarz gets Vancouver, and that’s the end of the debate.
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