Anthony Stolarz says he put Dennis Hildeby ‘in a shitty situation’ after allowing four goals against Bruins
Anthony Stolarz was the starting goaltender for the Maple Leafs on Saturday and was removed from the game after allowing four goals on 19 shots. There have certainly been worse starts where no goaltenders have been drawn, but it was as much a message for the rest of the team as it was for Stolarz.
Nevertheless, the goalkeeper apologized when speaking to the media after the match.
“I have to be patient and save,” Stolarz said, referring to his start. “Giving up the first two shots is not a good way to start the game. I liked our battle, the guys came out after that and responded well, and we put a lot of pressure on them. But you know, when you give a team like that a few freebies, it’s going to be hard to come back.”
Dennis Hildeby made his season debut today after seemingly being lined up to start against the Hurricanes on Sunday, and he played well considering the circumstances. He allowed one goal on 20 shots for a .950 save percentage in the game and made several big saves to keep the team in it. Stolarz made sure his tandem partner knew exactly that.
“He was great, I put him in a bad situation,” Stolarz said candidly. “So he came in, handled it like a good pro, played well and tried to give him confidence on the bench. He’s an easy guy to talk to and he talks to me on the bench too, so kudos to him for coming in, playing a solid game and giving us a chance.”
It has been a tough start to the season for Stolarz, who has played more in this first part of the season than he has in his career at this point in the season. He rejected the idea that his struggles are due to fatigue and instead focused on cleaning up some mistakes and improving the way he finds his game when he has one.
“The goalkeeper is the last line of defense and your job is to step up and save. I didn’t do that tonight.”
The Maple Leafs will look to shake off the bad atmosphere and respond with a strong effort against the Hurricanes on Sunday. Since Stolarz hasn’t played a full match, it’s possible he’s in line to start again and write up his mistakes, but that has yet to be revealed.
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