Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz did not travel with the team for the road trip, as he recovers from an upper-body injury, head coach Craig Berube confirmed via Sportsnet’s Luke Fox.
Stolarz sustained the injury against the Boston Bruins on November 11 and has been out of action since. Joseph Woll will make his sixth consecutive start on Friday, when the Maple Leafs face off against the Washington Capitals. Dennis Hildeby is widely expected to start Saturday’s contest against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
It was initially believed that Stolarz sustained a minor injury, but it’s more severe than the team initially anticipated, Berube revealed on November 20. Berube also ruled out the possibility of a setback. Stolarz posted a 6-5-1 record in 13 appearances, with a .884 save percentage and 3.51 goals against average.
Toronto will play the Florida Panthers on Tuesday, before wrapping up its road trip on December 4 against the Carolina Hurricanes. Berube indicated that Brandon Carlo could potentially return for Tuesday’s game, if he’s able to practice well enough on Monday. Carlo is on injured reserve with a lower-body injury and has not played since November 13 against the Los Angeles Kings. The veteran defenceman resumed skating last week, and participated among the extras during Thursday’s practice.
It’s been a difficult start to the season for the Maple Leafs, dealing with numerous injuries throughout the year. Auston Matthews, Matthew Knies and Nicolas Roy all returned to the lineup from multi-game injury-related absences for Wednesday’s victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Maple Leafs forward William Nylander was ruled out of Friday’s game against the Washington Capitals due to illness. Nylander is expected to play Saturday, but his status will be determined prior to game time.
Stolarz was arguably the Maple Leafs’ most important player last season, when he was healthy. He missed nearly two months while recovering from a procedure to remove a loose body in his knee, and the Maple Leafs are certainly being cautious about his progress.
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