The Maple Leafs are making a clear point with their crease, and Sergei Bobrovsky is the one hearing it.
Bobrovsky will sit tonight against the Nashville Predators, with Anthony Stolarz getting the start. For a goalie carrying a $7 million annual salary, that is not the kind of move anyone expected to see this early. Bobrovsky has two Stanley Cups on his résumé and has long been viewed as the kind of veteran who can shoulder a heavy workload, even now in his late 30s.
But the first two games have not gone the way Toronto needed. Bobrovsky is off to a 3.06 goals-against average with a .887 save percentage after two losses to open the season. It is still a small sample, but it is also the kind of start that does not inspire confidence when wins are already hard to come by.
According to Mark Masters, the Leafs are turning to Stolarz tonight, and he earned that look with a strong performance in a win over the New York Islanders. Jim Hiller has said Stolarz’s start was always part of the preseason plan.
That may be true. It may also be beside the point.
What matters is the message the organization is sending: nobody is being handed the net right now. The Leafs want to see how this plays out over a larger sample, with both goalies sharing the workload until one of them clearly grabs the job.
That approach is a little surprising given Bobrovsky’s history. With his track record, you would expect him to be in the crease after so much time off. Instead, Hiller is choosing to keep Stolarz fresh as well.
There’s also a practical layer here. Bobrovsky and Stolarz have both dealt with injuries, so this could be about preserving both goalies for the long haul, especially with the playoffs still ahead on the horizon.
At 1-2-0, the Leafs are not in a position to simply stand pat and hope things sort themselves out. So while Stolarz getting the nod tonight may have raised some eyebrows, it probably should not have.
Last season’s goaltending picture with Joseph Woll and Anthony Stolarz was shaped by injuries and a lack of confidence. Toronto cannot afford a repeat of that this year, and Hiller looks determined to manage the situation before it turns into a bigger problem.
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