Maple Leafs Facing Ultimatum in Net After Joseph Woll's Game 5 Breakdown

Toronto is dealing with the questions over who will start in net for Game 6 coming off a lowly 6-1 loss to Florida in which starting netminder Joseph Woll was removed the game for Matt Murray.

Murray, who faces his first playoff action, was the third-string goalie for the Leafs after Woll was removed, and leading goaltender Anthony Stolarz exited Game 1 of the series due to injury.

With Stolarz out, Joseph Woll had managed to win the Leafs first two games, but since then has been unable to get much else, losing their last three games, down 3-2 to the Panthers and headed for a must-win Game 6 in Florida.

Now, the Toronto Maple Leafs have to figure out what is the pathway going forward after a humiliating loss and now a game away from being eliminated from the Stanley Cup playoffs, although their options are still not crystal clear.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have what appears to be three options for starting in net for the playoffs, all with different degrees of certainty.

The starter that Toronto assumingly wants is the one they relied up against the Ottawa Senators in Anthony Stolarz.

What it will come down to is Stolarz's health.

If he is healthy, he most likely will play. If he is still unable to return tocthe Leafs lineup at this time, he's not going to be an option.

That will leave the Game 5 duo of Joseph Woll and Matt Murray.

It would make the most sense despite the lopsided loss in which Woll started that he get the start over Murray.

Woll is the more proven and trusted player, having taken over for Stolarz and with 42GP this season for Toronto, where Murray has played just three games in both the regular season and playoffs combined, including the previous game, due to injury.

Murray is a 2x Stanley Cup winner with the Pittsburgh Penguins, so showing up isn't a problem for Murray, but that was back in 2017 and 2018, and a much different Matt Murray exists.

Toronto will likely be contemplating its options and testing out both goalies, but it would be a shock if the Leafs deviated from Joseph Woll in net if Stolarz is unavailable.

The team must feel confident that Matt Murray can step up and be the Leafs' netminder in these playoffs - an uncertain task for a player who has gone years without consistent NHL action and could be thrown into a massive moment.

It will remain to be seen what Toronto does for Saturday's game against Florida, but one thing is clear that whoever is in net, must be on the top of their game no matter what.