Stick or twist? Stolarz vs Woll. That’s the question facing the Toronto Maple Leafs ahead of the playoffs. David Alter has his say ahead of the run in.
At some point between now and the start of the NHL playoffs, the Toronto Maple Leafs will have to make a decision on who starts in goal for Game 1 of the playoffs.
Anthony Stolarz and Joseph Woll both entered the 2024-25 season without carrying the experience of a starting goaltender for an entire season. So there was always going to be a question of durability among both goalies.
Stolarz appeared to be the frontrunner early on. He was posting Vezina-caliber numbers with a 9-5-2 record and .927 save percentage before he was shut down in December to have a procedure to remove a loose pebble in his knee.
Joseph Woll performed admirably in the seven weeks that Stolarz missed, posting a 10-5 record in 15 games following Stolarz’s injury. But down the stretch, both goalies have struggled since the 4 Nations Face-Off. In 10 games since 4 Nations, Stolarz has a save percentage of .895, while Woll has an .898 save percentage in the seven games played.
The good news is the Leafs have a lot of time between now and mid-April when the Stanley Cup Playoffs begin to make a decision.
Does It Really Matter?
While it’s important for the Maple Leafs to begin the post-season with a go-to option, they could easily pivot to their other netminder if they feel the need to do so. Last season, Ilya Samsonov outperformed Woll down the stretch before Woll stepped in and started Games 5 and 6, helping the Leafs force a Game 7. Unfortunately, Woll was injured at the end of Game 6 and Samsonov started Game 7. The Russian netminder wasn’t the reason the club lost the game and the series. But Woll had been so dominant in those games he played that it was an unfortunate situation.
More Like Themselves
Tensions started to run high again when the Maple Leafs fell to the bottom-feeding Nashville Predators on Saturday. That prompted John Tavares to say his team should be pissed off and head coach Craig Berube stated he hadn’t seen mental mistakes like that from his team in a while. The Leafs looked energized on Tuesday as they pounced on the Philadelphia Flyers by a score of 7-2.
I’ve attended many games and that one felt like it needed the mercy rule.
William Nylander is All About the Playoffs
William Nylander picked up his 40th goal of the season on Tuesday and has hit the 40-goal mark for the third consecutive season. Although there are 11 games remaining in the season, he was not in the mood to discuss his regular-season success, instead bringing the focus to playoff preparation. You can tell it bothered him to be unavailable for the club’s first three games of the team’s 2024 Stanley Cup run due to “eye migraines”. A fully available Nylander could have made the difference in that series, especially since it was decided by Game 7 in overtime.
Changes Need to be Made in the Schedule
This season, my third time reporting on-location at every home and road game, has revealed a ridiculous schedule. The Leafs had one instance where they came home for a game after a three-game road trip just to head back west for another four-game road trip. One way to fix this and make it fair? Make it so you can’t have one-off road or home games. Every home or road stretch must consist of a minimum of two games. It will significantly reduce the amount of ‘return’ trips you have to make. I understand the logistics can be challenging, but a solution must be found. There is hope with next season potentially being a little longer with an earlier start time, but with the Olympics set to take place, I’m sure it will still be quite tight.