All Eyes on Anthony Stolarz Ahead of His First Maple Leafs Preseason Start

With the fourth preseason game ahead of them on Saturday night against the Montreal Canadiens at home, the Toronto Maple Leafs are getting a good look at their projected starter for the foreseeable future, Anthony Stolarz.

He was seen taking the ice as part of the game group warm ups and is likely to be playing at least the first half of the game against the Habs:

It's great to be able to see Stolarz back on the ice and what he can bring given that he was sadly knocked out of the playoffs last year due to injury and never got a chance to help Toronto in that crucial game seven.

Stolarz posted a 21-8-3 record with a 2.14 GAA and .926 SV% last year; he signed a two-year, $5-millon contract last summer and is looking to cash in again this season.

It's going to also be a huge sign to see how Stolarz is going to be able to perform, given that he is going to be the starter yet again to start the season after Joseph Woll took an indefinite leave of absence.

Similar to last year when Woll was out for the first month of the season, it's going to be looked upon to Stolarz to take the reins once again and run with them.

Once he was given a chance to shine he never really looked back, and was a key part as to why Toronto was able to hoist the Atlantic Division pennant in 2024-25.

His partner in crime at least against the Canadiens on Saturday night is going to be Artur Akhtyamov as he tries to bounce back from a shaky preseason performance against Ottawa where he gave up three goals leading to a Toronto loss.

So it's likely that while Stolarz only gets 30 or so minutes on Saturday night, that should be more than enough time to gauge things for better or for worse.

Montreal had a similar situation with Sam Montembeault on Thursday, and it didn't turn out great so we just have to hope that Stolarz is in top form because Toronto's going to need it.

There could be a situation as well where Stolarz impresses enough in his debut that he ends up staying in the whole game, and that would be a great litmus test to see not only how healthy he is; but how motivated.

So fans can look forward to seeing the debut of Anthony Stolarz this season against the rival Montreal Canadiens, and from the sounds of it, the goaltender is ready to make an impact regardless of when he plays.