The Toronto Maple Leafs have rolled with a goalie tandem all season long. Instead of going with a clear-cut number one, the Leafs invested in bringing in Anthony Stolarz to team with Joseph Woll.
With the exception of a few blips here and there, the Leafs’ goaltending tandem has been solid. Stolarz has looked fantastic at times, while Woll has provided steady netminding, even when the team plays poorly in front of him.
However, neither Woll nor Stolarz are proven playoff workhorses. Neither has the track record of Sergei Bobrovsky or Andrei Vasilevsky. As such, asking Stolarz or Woll to take the reins during the 2025 NHL playoffs is a bad idea, to say the least.
The Toronto Maple Leafs need to continue rolling their goaltending tandem in order to keep both goalies fresh. Most importantly, keeping the tandem in place allows the Leafs to manage both goalies’ workloads.
Unless one of Stolarz or Woll goes nuts and shuts everyone out during the playoffs, it’s likely both goalies alternate during games. For insurance, Stolarz can get Games 1 and 2 at home while Woll gets Games 3 and 4 on the road, or vice-versa.
The point here is that coach Craig Berube must resist the temptation to anoint a starter for the playoffs and hope he can ride the wave. Neither goalie is a proven playoff performer at this point.
So, why fix something that isn’t broken?
Comparing Toronto Maple Leafs netminders over last 10 starts
Over their last 10 starts, Anthony Stolarz and Joseph Woll have played solid hockey. Stolarz’s last “stinker” was a five-goal outing against the Colorado Avalanche on March 8th. He surrendered five goals on 32 shots.
That Avalanche game wasn’t entirely on Stolarz. The Leafs built a big lead and then stopped skating. They left Stolarz out to fry and didn’t pick up their goalie down the stretch.
Barring that outing, Stolarz has not allowed more than three goals. That span includes two shutouts, one against the Columbus Blue Jackets on April 5th and last Saturday night against the Montreal Canadiens.
As for Joseph Woll, he’s given up five goals twice in his last 10 starts. However, the Leafs one won of those games and lost the other in the shootout against the San Jose Sharks. Then, Woll has been terrific otherwise.
There was the inexplicable game against the Nashville Predators on March 22nd in which no one showed up to play.
Last Sunday’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes and March 19th’s outing against the Colorado Avalanche were poignant examples of Woll’s dominance. In that game against the Avalanche, Woll made 38 saves for a playoff-like win.
As you can see, there’s not enough separation between Stolarz and Woll. Both netminders have played equally well. Despite Stolarz having an apparent edge in stats, the fact is that there’s not enough evidence to support one goalie is better than the other.
The Toronto Maple Leafs must continue with their goalie tandem if they are to have any shot at making a deep run during the 2025 NHL playoffs.