Craig Berube Makes His Decision on Goaltender Starters for Back-to-Back Games

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Chris Gerics
November 12, 2024 (1:14 PM)

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Craig Berube needs to keep Toronto's momentum strong, and that starts between the pipes, and he's named Anthony Stolarz as his starter for tonight's Battle of Ontario clash.

The Toronto Maple Leafs are currently on a three-game win streak, after dominating their Atlantic Division opponents in a cohesive team effort that has led to Toronto outscoring the opposition 11-2 in that span.

A new powerplay explosion coupled with a team that has come together in the wake of Auston Matthews' injury has led the Maple Leafs to a 9-5-2 record, good for second in the Atlantic. Their goaltending has been a key factor, and it's what's made Toronto such a scary team to face.

So Craig Berube needs to figure out who he's going to put in against Ottawa and on Tuesday morning, we got our answer. Per TSN's Mark Masters on X, Berube's sticking to the hot hand as the Leafs head back into Scotiabank Arena:

With Toronto on a back-to-back for the second time in two weeks, Anthony Stolarz gets the call as he will continue his hot streak to start the season. Holding a 6-2-2 record with a 2.00 GAA and .930 SV%, showcasing he wasn't the league's best backup for no reason.

Woll will face the scorching-hot Washington Capitals as he tries to slow down Alex Ovechkin's meteoric rise as he journeys on this season to be the NHL's all-time leading goal scorer. He struggled a bit this year but had a strong start against the Canadiens, and is 2-2-0 with a 2.27 GAA and .905 SV%, picking things up slowly where he left off last year.

Toronto faces an Ottawa Senators team that is still struggling to find themselves but is sitting at a 7-7-0 record, showing they have some promise and it isn't a complete disaster (unlike the Boston Bruins' season). Ottawa counters with Linus Ullmark, a former Bruin who came over to Ottawa in a blockbuster trade this summer.

The Battle of Ontario kicks off tonight from Scotiabank Arena starting at 7 PM ET. It will be the 169th meeting between the two teams as Toronto looks to continue their all-time dominance and add to their 85-68-3-13 record against their provincial rivals.