TORONTO — Anthony Stolarz came into this season with less NHL playoff experience than the average episode length of a prestige drama show.

Now the Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender is writing his own script — starring the Edison, New Jersey, native as the steady, reliable netminder Toronto has been desperately seeking through one failed postseason run after another. The Leafs have a Stanley Cup drought going back to 1967.

And — spoiler alert! — Stolarz could have a potential hit on his hands in the Leafs’ first-round playoff series against the Ottawa Senators. All Toronto needs is one more win — featuring a top-notch performance from Stolarz. It’s for him to stand and deliver.

Flash back to one year ago, and Stolarz was backing up Sergei Bobrovsky in Florida. He made his lone playoff appearance in Game 4 of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final against Edmonton, replacing Bobrovsky after the Panthers had fallen into a 5-1 hole.

That became Stolarz’s playoff résumé — less than 35 minutes of cleanup duty in an 8-1 defeat. Bobrovsky returned for Game 5 and backstopped Florida to its first Cup win.

Stolarz rightly drank in the victory with his teammates. But would champagne from hockey’s holy grail have tasted sweeter to Stolarz if he’d had more opportunity to help earn it? He’s hoping to find out.

Florida let Stolarz explore free agency in the summer, and Toronto stepped in with a two-year, $5 million contract. The Leafs, who had moved on from Ilya Samsonov, needed a veteran to play in tandem with up-and-comer Joseph Woll and believed Stolarz, 31, could fill the role. To that point he’d never been a true starter — his busiest season had been in 2021-22 with the Anaheim Ducks, appearing in 28 games with a .917 save percentage and 2.67 goals-against average.

Stolarz might have grown used to being second on the call sheet. Going to Toronto gave him a chance at top billing. And Stolarz hasn’t taken the investment for granted.

He was sensational from the start, compiling a regular-season record of 21-8-3 with a .926 SV% and 2.14 GAA. Stolarz’s impact on the Leafs was further reflected by his absence — the netminder missed 23 games following a December knee surgery and Toronto produced a 13-10 record. The Leafs were 20-7-2 after Stolarz’s return. Coincidence? Unlikely.

That’s not to say Woll didn’t pull his weight alongside — and without — Stolarz. The 26-year-old was 27-14-1 in the regular season with a .909 SV% and 2.73 GAA. But when it came time for Toronto coach Craig Berube to choose a playoff starter, it seemed like a no-brainer to tap Stolarz.

“He has experience in the playoffs,” Berube said. “He didn’t start [games], but he has experience of being there and seeing it. He’s been around for quite some time now. He’s played extremely well this year, and so he’s ready to go.”

Even that feels like an understatement. Stolarz has stood tall — with all of his 6-foot-6, 243-pound frame — in what could become the most successful postseason run Toronto has enjoyed in decades. If anyone can play their part to keep it going, it’s him. And what awaits Toronto on the other side would be more than just a second-round bout, but one against Bobrovsky and the Panthers — where Stolarz can flaunt his now-leading man status.

COUNTLESS INTERNET MEMES have been launched featuring the Maple Leafs’ backlog of disappointing postseasons. Goaltending wasn’t entirely responsible for all of the Leafs’ floundering, but — especially lately — it hasn’t been a real boost, either.

The Leafs have flamed out in six first-round playoff series since 2016-17. The losses have come with impressive variety — from blown multigame leads to stomach-churning Game 7 overtime defeats — and through it all there’s been some lingering question of what a difference timely goaltending could have made.

Because that’s the key: It’s not just how many saves a goalie can accumulate but when they occur. That has been Stolarz’s calling card — that his dependability, not perfection, is a virtue.

Consider Toronto’s recent postseason history:

• In the 2021-22 playoffs, Jack Campbell had a marvelous regular season (.914 SV%, 2.64 GAA) and then stumbled in the playoffs (3-4, .897 SV% and 3.15 GAA). Toronto lost in the first round to Tampa Bay.

• In 2022-23, Samsonov was terrific in the regular season (.919 SV%, 2.33 GAA) but turned increasingly mediocre in the playoffs (4-4 record, .898 SV% and 3.13 GAA). Woll made three starts that postseason, going 1-2 with a .915 SV% and 2.43 GAA. Toronto lost in the second round to Florida.

• The Leafs’ most painful playoff chapter between the pipes might have been last season. Samsonov’s poor play contributed to Toronto’s 3-1 series deficit against Boston in the first round. Woll took over and salvaged the series with two sensational performances that forced Game 7. He then suffered an injury and couldn’t start in that deciding tilt. Toronto had no choice but to go back to Samsonov, who failed to shut the door in a 2-1 overtime loss. Samsonov finished the playoffs 1-4, with an .896 SV% and 3.01 GAA.

Stolarz has already backstopped the Leafs to a pair of overtime victories in this year’s first-round series against the Senators (although Ottawa managed just one OT shot on goal combined in those losses) and appears generally unruffled no matter the stakes.

He’s also a beacon of consistency: Toronto’s Game 3 win in extra time marked Stolarz’s 11th straight win going back to March 20. That stretch included shutouts in three of his past four starts.

That streak ended in Game 4. Ottawa’s desperation to stay alive in the series won out over the Leafs’ limp efforts in overtime — Toronto couldn’t capitalize on a four-minute power play, and later, after the Leafs failed to clear the zone, Jake Sanderson sent a shot sailing over Stolarz’s shoulder to give the Senators a 4-3 victory. Stolarz ended the night with an .810 SV%, his lowest of the season.

“I picked up [Sanderson’s shot] a little late. Tried to get there and fight through the screen,” Stolarz said after the defeat. “I thought we played a hell of a game. [The loss] boils down to making one more save on my end. But I like where our game is at; keep doing what we’re doing.”

Game 5 was slightly better for Stolarz — if worse overall for the Leafs. Toronto’s once dominant offense went ice cold as Senators’ goaltender Linus Ullmark turned in a 29-save shutout to lead Ottawa to a 4-0 victory and force a Game 6 on Thursday. Stolarz allowed two goals — one shorthanded, for the second consecutive game — on 17 shots to finish with an .882 SV%. He’s now 3-2 in the postseason, with an. 899 SV% and 2.25 GAA.

A pair of lackluster showings can’t snowball for Stolarz though if the Leafs expect to see Ottawa out of their first playoff appearance since 2017.

“We like our game, we’re doing a lot of good things,” Stolarz said after Game 5. “It’s always the toughest game to win, the fourth one. But if you had told us before the series we’d be up 3-2 going back to their place, that’s a position we’d take.”

Stolarz — who confirmed he “felt fine” despite a heavy workload in the series with three consecutive overtimes under his belt — learned a thing or two on the Panthers’ Cup run as well.

“No team is going to lay over,” he said. “[The Senators] have come out hard. It’s a little adversity for us. [The team] is making my job easy, it’s just fighting to make that one save.”

Those who know Stolarz best would expect no lesser response.

“He’s a gamer,” said Leafs winger Max Domi, who played with Stolarz on the OHL’s London Knights as they battled to consecutive Memorial Cup appearances in 2013 and 2014. “Unbelievable teammate.”

STOLARZ DOES MORE to look out for the Leafs than just turn pucks aside. In the emotionally charged Battle of Ontario, Stolarz has used his imposing frame to keep the Senators from controlling his crease. Ottawa established a physical, net-front presence from the get-go, and Toronto has had to adjust accordingly. And when Senators forward Ridly Greig got in Stolarz’s face during Game 2, Stolarz required no invitation to push back — literally — at Greig, earning himself a roughing penalty.

There were no regrets from the goaltender.

“I’ve taken quite a few penalties in my day,” he said after the game. “Caught up in the heat of the battle. It is what it is.”

Stolarz’s teammates appreciate his enthusiasm and the way it drives his success guarding the cage.

“He’s just a competitor,” defenseman Brandon Carlo said. “There was that moment there where he and Greig got bodied up, but [Stolarz] is so focused on the present moment, and I love that. His compete level is just there the whole game, and I think that’s all you’re seeing is a ferocious competitor.”

That has spelled bad news for the Senators, as Stolarz has continuously stymied Ottawa’s offensive efforts. That could have been what drew the Senators’ Nick Cousins to get playful with Stolarz during warmups before Game 3, with the forward flipping a puck across the center ice line at Stolarz. The two had been teammates before — with Philadelphia in 2016-17 and last season with the Cup-winning Panthers — but the NHL didn’t see it as friendly fire. The league fined the Senators $25,000 and Cousins’ $2,083.33 for “unsportsmanlike conduct.”

Stolarz was hardly thrown off his game.

“I didn’t even notice, to be honest with you,” the goalie said. “I know [Cousins], played with him for a number of years. I’m sure he didn’t mean any malicious intent by it.”

Stolarz was open to toning down his own physicality, under the right circumstances. He followed up with officials before Game 3 about the Greig incident and delivered a clear message — “watch my back, and I’ll behave.”

The way Stolarz executes at his best, it’s tough taking your eyes off him. But he can be his own toughest critic. He shouldered responsibility for not tracking that Sanderson winner and closing the Senators out. And it wasn’t the first goal he’d lamented letting in. When Toronto led Ottawa 2-1 midway through the third period of Game 3, Stolarz allowed a wrister from Brady Tkachuk, Ottawa’s first shot of the frame, to go top shelf. That teed up an overtime session — though it lasted only 19 seconds before Simon Benoit called game.

The happy outcome didn’t dissolve Stolarz’s frustration about the Tkachuk score.

“Tough one for me to give up,” he said. “But that’s the great thing about playoff hockey, you’ve got 19 other guys there to help pick you up, and I knew after that I’d be dialed and the next shot I’d be ready for.”

Perhaps that’s one of Stolarz’s superpowers, too. He can shake off a bad goal or a bad game easier than others. The only time all season Stolarz lost consecutive starts was during a five-game skid through March. He followed that up with the 11-game win streak.

“He’s been outstanding all year,” defenseman Morgan Rielly said. “As teammates, we have to do what we can to support him and make his life a little bit easier. He’s been outstanding all year, and playoffs have been no different.”

BERUBE KNEW THAT Stolarz wanted to be more than a career backup.

His time with Stolarz goes all the way back to Philadelphia, when the fresh-faced goaltender was finally entering the Flyers’ lineup after nearly three seasons in the American Hockey League. Berube — then the Flyers’ coach — sensed Stolarz, a second-round draft pick (No. 45 overall) in 2012, was eager to get rolling in the NHL. And Stolarz clearly never gave up on his goal of being a No. 1.

Here’s what NHL is looking at from last night. “Friend of Bieksa” Nick Cousins shoots puck at Stolarz. NHL not crazy about pre-game stuff…also clamped down on funny Scheifele/Hofer standoff in Blues/Jets series pic.twitter.com/ZF08AZwdO4

— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) April 25, 2025

“He came in this year wanting to be a starter,” Berube said. “He’s been excellent all year. It took him a bit of time to establish himself again, but he’s doing the job for us right now.”

As long as that remains true, the Leafs can reasonably believe their postseason fortunes will turn, too. It wouldn’t be just because of Stolarz, of course. But for the Leafs, it’s nice to know he’s there.

And loving every minute of being a leading man — at last.

“It’s fun. I go out there and I enjoy what I do. I enjoy the game,” Stolarz said. “[We’re] all striving for the same goal. You want to go out there with a smile on your face and enjoy it.

“At the end of the day, it’s intense, heat of the battle. This is what you live for. This is playoff hockey.”