Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz will start Wednesday’s season opener against the Montreal Canadiens, head coach Craig Berube confirmed to travelling reporters.
Joseph Woll is dealing with a previously undisclosed lower-body issue and is being held out for precautionary reasons. Woll has not been ruled out for Thursday’s game against the New Jersey Devils, Berube confirmed via TSN’s Mark Masters.
“Woll experienced some lower-body tightness yesterday, it was precautionary, so we’re going to keep him out tonight,” Berube said.
Woll has faced injury issues throughout his career and his season came to an abrupt end after making a stop in the final seconds of Game 6 against the Boston Bruins, where he submitted an outstanding performance to keep the season alive, before the team ultimately bowed out in Game 7. Woll posted a 12-11-1 record with a .907 save percentage and a 2.94 GAA during the 2023-24 regular season.
Dennis Hildeby made the trip with the Maple Leafs to Montreal and is assumed to be joining the club for Thursday’s game against the New Jersey Devils. Hildeby has yet to make an NHL start but he’s widely considered as one of the league’s rising goaltender prospects and was The Leafs Nation’s third-ranked Maple Leafs prospect.
Part of the luxury of Maple Leafs having two strong options in net is that Berube has the option to go with the goaltender who is readiest to give the team the best opportunity to win.
Stolarz joined the Maple Leafs on a two-year contract worth $2.5 million annually and is projected to work alongside Woll in a true tandem, before one of the goalies emerges as the No. 1 starter. He is coming off a Stanley Cup victory with the Florida Panthers, where he emerged as one of the league’s premier backup goaltenders, posting a 16-7-2 record with a .925 save percentage and a 2.03 goals against average during the regular season.
