Leafs’ Woll Returns Following 4-game Absence, Still No Timeline For Stolarz

The Toronto Maple Leafs received some good and not-so-good news on their goaltending front.

Joseph Woll will make his return and start against the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday, head coach Craig Berube said.

Woll last played on Dec. 3 against the Carolina Hurricanes. He was pulled from the game after the second period, appearing to suffer a lower-body injury. Dennis Hildeby replaced Woll, and the Leafs went on to win that game 5-1.

In Woll’s absence, the 24-year-old Hildeby has filled in admirably, stopping 33 of 34 shots in a 2-1 shootout loss to the Montreal Canadiens on Dec. 6 and recording a 29-save shutout against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Dec. 8.

Woll was playing exceptionally well before the injury, entering Tuesday’s game against the Blackhawks with a .928 save percentage and 2.44 goals against average in eight games this season.

Hildeby will be Woll’s backup on Tuesday and is likely to start one of two back-to-back games this weekend.

Berube also provided an update on Anthony Stolarz, whose mysterious ailment has kept him out of action since Nov. 11. He hasn’t returned to the ice in any capacity since.

Toronto’s head coach said Stolarz is seeing another specialist and acknowledged the injury is not concussion-related.

“He’s not making the progress that we thought he would make,” Berube told reporters on Tuesday.

Stolarz was pulled from the mid-November game against the Boston Bruins after the first period. The 31-year-old netminder had been tasked with a heavy load to begin the season, starting 13 of Toronto’s 17 games as Woll tended to a personal issue.

Stolarz was removed from Game 1 of Toronto’s second-round playoff series against Florida following a collision with centre Sam Bennett. He later admitted that he suffered a concussion on the play. He also missed more than a month of action during the 2024-25 regular season with a knee injury.

The Leafs enter Tuesday’s game in second-last in the Atlantic Division with 33 points and losers of two straight games.