Backup Plan: Anthony Stolarz Went From Relative Obscurity To Maple Leafs Starter

In a city where you’re only as good – or as bad – as your latest performance, everything was simpatico in The Center of the Hockey Universe™ for one night.

The local heroes/bums earned full marks for a dominating victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Oct. 21 in the only game on the NHL schedule that night. That group included the man in the Toronto Maple Leafs’ net. The callers into the post-game show were happy, in large part due to a 5-on-3 penalty kill when Anthony Stolarz started by saving a laser from Brandon Hagel, then reached back and snatched the puck off the goal line on the Jake Guentzel rebound. Stolarz termed it “desperation mode.”

Stolarz was talking about one of the almost 3,000 saves he has made during his NHL career, but he could very well have been describing his own fortunes – or those of the Maple Leafs. From a team perspective, let’s count the number of things that could have gone sideways. First, GM Brad Treliving swung and missed on acquiring Jacob Markstrom in the off-season, so he signed Stolarz, a newly minted Stanley Cup champion, to a two-year, $5-million deal. Stolarz was supposed to be the backup because, well, that’s what he’s always been. But when presumptive No. 1 Joseph Woll went down in the pre-game warmups of the first game of the season, Stolarz stepped into the crease and into the breach.

And now, for the first time in his career, the guy who is six months older than Andrei Vasilevskiy has a legitimate opportunity to be a No. 1 goalie.

You want to be the guy, and you want to play, But there's only one guy who can play the position – Anthony Stolarz

The early returns are promising. Stolarz and his massive frame certainly passed the eye test out of the gates in the regular season, giving the Leafs reliable play at a position that has previously been something of a black hole. And while nobody has a monopoly on overcoming adversity, Stolarz has seen his share of it and come out the other side. In fact, he kind of feels as though things are just getting started. “You want to be the guy, and you want to play, but there’s only one guy who can play the position,” Stolarz said. “You look around and see guys like Tim Thomas, Ben Bishop and Craig Anderson, guys who made it later in their careers. I feel like I could do that.”

Stolarz points to the bubble season of 2020-21, when he was on the Anaheim Ducks’ taxi squad playing behind John Gibson and Ryan Miller. He did extensive work with Ducks goalie coach Sudarshan ‘Sudsie’ Maharaj to improve and refine his game, and he intently studied how both Gibson and Miller went about their business. Stolarz got into eight games late in the season, then he took on the role of the Ducks’ No. 2 goalie for the next two campaigns.

So when the Florida Panthers needed a backup last season, they turned to Stolarz. And he responded by posting some of the NHL’s best numbers – albeit in a small body of work.

So, we know he can be an elite goalie for 20 games. But can he do it for 40-plus? Toronto coach Craig Berube seems to be leaning toward a pretty even split for his two goalies, but nothing is stopping either one from going on a heater and taking over the net. “Both goalies are going to play more than they have in the past,” Berube said when asked who might be the No. 1 guy. “I’ll leave it at that.”

Both goalies are going to play more than they have in the past. I'll leave it at that – Leafs coach Craig Berube

That’s no problem for Stolarz, because nothing has ever been handed to him. His father is a shipping clerk at a chemical plant in New Jersey, and his mother is a medical transcriptionist. He’s experienced some pretty serious injuries, like the time when, as a member of the OHL’s London Knights, he had his calf cut by a skate for 55 stitches and missed 17 games. He’s had surgery on both knees, and he’s with his fifth NHL team. (Anthony Stolarz on the Edmonton Oilers? We hardly knew ye.) “It’s the mindset my parents and my entire family have instilled in me,” Stolarz said. “Go out there and take nothing for granted and enjoy what you’re doing. When you work hard, good things usually happen. It’s about making opportunity.”

And that’s exactly what Stolarz is doing this season. He looked at the Maple Leafs’ roster and their goaltending situation before signing with the organization, precisely because he saw an opportunity there. Early in the regular season, he was seizing it. “I know the mentality and what it takes to be a starter,” Stolarz said. “And I’m just going to go out there and do my best.”

This article appeared in the Nov. 25, 2024, World Junior Championship issue of The Hockey News. In this edition, we feature wall-to-wall coverage of the 2025 World Junior Championship, complete with previews of all 10 teams plus some of the most prominent players involved. Also in this issue, we shine the spotlight on San Jose's Tyler Toffoli, Philadelphia's Travis Konecny and a team from Haida Gwaii that really goes the extra mile.

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