Auston Matthews and the Toronto Maple Leafs enter the 2025-26 NHL season with one goal: winning the Stanley Cup. Easier said than done, but the Buds believe this is their year. Then again, Leafs Nation has felt that way nearly every season since 1967. Eventually, the hex has to break—right?
The Maple Leafs’ roster for opening night of the 2025-26 NHL campaign is virtually all but set. Still, a report around the league suggests Craig Berube and his staff might be in for a big battle for the starting job in net. Goaltenders Anthony Stolarz and Joseph Woll are set to compete for the starting crease in The Six.
“I think the Maple Leafs [will have a goaltending battle in training camp] with Stolarz and Woll,” Michael Augello stated on The Wraparound podcast. “Woll was the goalie who could took over for an injured Stolarz and played very well in the playoffs.
“The team in front of [Woll] didn’t play very well. The problem with Stolarz hasn’t been ability, it’s been availability. I think if Woll is healthy, he should be the number one over Stolarz.”
Anthony Stolarz #41 of the Toronto Maple Leafs at T-Mobile Arena
By the numbers
It’s impossible to know what might have happened if Stolarz hadn’t sustained a concussion in Game 1 against the Florida Panthers. Perhaps the Leafs would have taken down the Cats—perhaps not. Either way, it’s all counterfactual, so there’s little point in debating it.
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What’s purely factual are the numbers put up by Stolarz and Woll during the postseason. Despite many areas of concern for Toronto in the playoffs, goaltending wasn’t really one of them. While Stolarz barely played in Game 1 of the Second Round, both netminders effectively played seven games each statistically. That helps paint a clear picture of their performance.
Stolarz, Toronto’s starting netminder last season, posted a 2.91 goals-against average (GAA) and a .901 save percentage (SV%). Woll, meanwhile, recorded a higher 3.56 GAA, though that could be attributed to the defensive collapse in front of him—particularly in Games 5 and 7 against the Panthers. During the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Woll averaged a .886 SV%.
Prove it
The Leafs certainly believe this season could finally be the one. But stumble after stumble can only stretch Toronto’s faith so far. With Mitch Marner no longer in town, the pressure rests almost entirely on the captain. Matthews is now taking the fall for the Maple Leafs.
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Whether the former first overall pick in 2016 thrives under duress or shrinks remains to be seen. What is crystal clear is that all eyes in the NHL will be on him. Matthews will now write a new chapter of his Toronto career the “Han” way: solo.
