Why the Anthony Stolarz injury is drawing a heavy Jake Muzzin comparison behind the scenes
Photo credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images, Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images
Anthony Stolarz's injury concerns are drawing an eerie parallel to a former Maple Leafs defenceman in Jake Muzzin; who left the NHL after one too many injuries.
When the Maple Leafs signed Anthony Stolarz last summer, it was seen as a solid move that beefed up the goaltending and gave Joseph Woll a strong veteran presence behind him.
The move paid off and his first season was spectacular but derailed a bit by injuries. Fast forward to this year and he was the polar opposite. Looking like a replacement level goalie at times, Stolarz still battled injuries but they definitely took their toll on the 32-year old.
Stolarz posted a 10-10-3 record with a 3.28 GAA and .893 SV% this season, a far cry from his 21-8-3 record along with a stellar 2.14 GAA and .926 SV%.
However, it's starting to bring back some pretty bad memories regarding another Maple Leafs player who never found his health again: Jake Muzzin.
The Jake Muzzin parallel and why the silence around the Anthony Stolarz injury is a major factor
Toronto acquired Muzzin during the 2018-19 season as a way to add a strong, Cup-winning presence to the backend and it paid off in his first season. He played 80 games, 37 points, 134 blocks, and 172 hits and looked poised to be that veteran leader they needed.
But he couldn't keep himself on the ice and managed to miss a total of 136 games over the next three seasons, including pretty much the entire 2022-23 season after a cervical spine injury.
He quietly stepped away in 2023, joined the Maple Leafs' development staff and has carved out a pretty nice role here. Players love him and still being someone entrenched in the game; he's a great mentor.
Looking at both players you start to see a scary parallel. Muzzin and Stolarz both had stellar debuts, got hurt in year two, and in the case of Muzzin; never healed. We haven't a clue about Stolarz's health and whether it's his knees, his head, or something else — the silence speaks volumes.
Toronto is almost scared of admitting that Stolarz has a glass jaw and while they did spend a fair bit of money extending him, at least they didn't pay the same price as Muzzin.
Silver linings I guess.
How this uncertainty in the crease forces Keith Pelley to completely pivot his summer plans
With Pelley already dealing with a new management team, the last thing he needs to worry about is making sure his goaltending is good enough to last through the season, however that job will lie with whoever becomes the new GM.
Their goal though is to make sure they get a good idea of where Stolarz is ahead of the season, and we can't be waiting until August or September to know what his status is going to be.
With Dennis Hildeby and Artur Akhtyamov already getting a taste of NHL action, clearly the team is trying to make sure they have insurance in case Stolarz goes down. Hildeby is a great piece to have that proved he belongs; if Stolarz starts to struggle then he needs to replace him ASAP.
The one bright spot about Stolarz is that while he's injured, when he's on he's on. A team would love to bet on that and for clubs like Philadelphia and New Jersey — it's a fairly cheap gamble on a former Cup winner.
Toronto needs to make sure they completely overhaul their defence first in order to give Stolarz even a fighting chance, but they have to be aware that at any moment he could drop (and be out for a bit).
It's just another task on Keith Pelley's to-do list, and it's something that could turn Toronto's summer upside down especially if we hear that Stolarz might not ever be 100% again.
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| POLL | ||
AVRIL 14|1085 ANSWERS Why the Anthony Stolarz injury is drawing a heavy Jake Muzzin comparison behind the scenes Should the Maple Leafs trade Anthony Stolarz before he gets a career-ending injury like Jake Muzzin? | ||
| Yes | 985 | 90.8 % |
| No | 100 | 9.2 % |
| List of polls | ||