The stellar season of Anthony Stolarz has hit a bump.
To be specific, a pebble-sized bump, as the Maple Leafs goaltender will have a procedure to have a loose body removed from the back of his knee.
“At this time, we’re going to list him as week to week, I would anticipate we’re looking in the four-week mark, four-to-six weeks, hopefully sooner rather than later,” Leafs general manager Brad Treliving said after Tuesday’s practice at the Ford Performance Centre.
“You don’t want to see anybody out, especially a goaltender who has been playing well like that, but we’re going to get it addressed.”
Stolarz will go under the knife on Wednesday in New York. He departed the Leafs game last Thursday against Anaheim after the first period and was not on the ice on Tuesday.
Any way it’s dissected, the Stolarz absence is a blow for the Leafs. He has been nothing short of excellent after signing a two-year pact in free agency in the summer and leads National Hockey League goalies (who have played in a minimum of 11 games) with a .927 save percentage.
Stolarz is 9-5-2 and is second in the NHL with a 2.15 goals-against average as the Leafs have battled the Florida Panthers for first place in the Atlantic Division. Both teams have 40 points.
An MRI was performed on Stolarz on Friday, Treliving said.
“The good news was everything came back and there was no structural damage,” Treliving said. “There seemed to be still some discomfort with him and some issues moving his knee, straightening his leg and there was found almost like a little pebble, a little loose body that was stuck in behind his knee. It’s not a repair, it’s not anything of that nature.
“It’s not uncommon for players to have, whether it be any loose chips or loose bodies and it’s in the wrong spot. We waited for a few days to see if it would move, but it doesn’t allow him to get full range of motion, so it has to be removed.”
In laying everything out on the table, Treliving broke from what has been recent tradition with the Leafs, as various injuries this season have been termed “day to day,” before becoming obvious that players would be out longer — captain Auston Matthews and defenceman Jake McCabe being two examples.
Playing into the Leafs’ favour has been the overall performance of Joseph Woll, who is slated to get the start on Wednesday in Dallas against the Stars.
Woll has a .918 save percentage in 12 games and now will get the bulk of the work, though with the Leafs playing a back-to-back set in each of the next three weekends, Woll won’t be doing all of the lifting.
While Dennis Hildeby is the backup now, the Leafs can turn to veteran Matt Murray or youngster Artur Akhtyamov if they see fit.
“I’ve got lots of confidence in our group,” Treliving said. “Joe has played extremely well. This is nothing new for us, dealing with injuries. It’s why we’ve got depth at all the positions.
“Joe and Anthony as a pair have been tremendous for us. We have Dennis and Matt and AA (with the Toronto Marlies), so we feel we’ve got some depth at the position. This is why you have it.”
Said coach Craig Berube, when asked about the goaltending with Stolarz out: “I’m confident. Woll has played really well this year. Hildeby has come in and won us two games and played pretty well. It’s a team game. We have a lot of back-to-backs coming up, so we’re going to need both of them.”
Still, you can imagine that the Leafs will keep their fingers crossed that Woll, who has a history of injuries, can stay healthy. If Woll gets hurt as well in the coming weeks, Treliving might be forced to make a trade.
Treliving said Stolarz is “disappointed,” but there was some relief for the 30-year-old that the injury was not more serious.
“I don’t want to downplay anything, but the news is much better (than it could have been),” Stolarz said. “Any time you’re not feeling great, we’re glad it’s not something where there is structural damage and you have do to something else.
“He’s feeling good that the issue has been identified.”
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