Be-leaf in Anthony Stolarz


By
February 4, 2025

David Maciuk recalls the time when he had to beg a tier two junior hockey team to sign little known goalie Anthony Stolarz. Now 31 years of age and a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs, the 6 foot 6 Stolarz has since forged a lengthy National Hockey League career as the quintessential backup goalie.

Stolarz, as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs

To be sure, Stolarz, who has now played in parts of nine NHL seasons with five teams and who was a member of the reigning 2024 Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers, wasn’t always in demand.

Maciuk as a long-time family advisor, player agent and the president of JDM Sports Management, remembers having to “practically beg” the Corpus Christi Ice Rays of the junior level North American Hockey League into taking the big goalie back in 2011. But not only did Stolarz eventually carry Corpus Christi on his shoulders for all of the ’11-12 season, his play led to him becoming a second round NHL draft pick by the Philadelphia Flyers in 2012.

After a single season with Corpus Christi in the NAHL, Stolarz received a Division 1, National Collegiate Athletic Association commitment to the University of Nebraska-Omaha. But after starting the ’12-13 season at Nebraska-Omaha, Stolarz found it wasn’t to his liking and so Maciuk arranged for his client to sign with the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League.

“That worked out rather well for Anthony, going to the O to play in London,” understated Maciuk, who is originally from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario but who has run JDM Sports from Chicago for many years now.

Stolarz, as a member of the London Knights

In London, Stolarz was a standout, fashioning a two-year record of 54-12-5 — regular season and playoffs included — before signing an NHL contract with Philadelphia.

Over the course of the past 10 plus years, Stolarz has become a very dependable NHL goalie and seemingly always in demand. Besides Philadelphia, Stolarz also stopped pucks for the Edmonton Oilers, Anaheim Ducks and Florida before signing a two year free agent contract with Toronto last summer.

Multiple surgeries and injuries have prevented Stolarz from becoming a full fledged starter in the NHL. As a matter of fact, he is currently on the injury list while having the best numbers of any of four goalies who have played for the Maple Leafs this season.

Having said, the New Jersey native who once had his agent having to beg a tier two junior team to take him, has managed to forge a rather noteworthy NHL career for himself.

Anthony Stolarz, holding the Stanley Cup as a member of the Florida Panthers, in a photo signed for David Maciuk.

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