Toronto Maple Leafs' Stolarz reveals conversation with Nylander following post-game criticism
It doesn’t appear as though there’s any bad blood or awkwardness in the Toronto Maple Leafs dressing room.
Some believed there may be some tension following Saturday’s game, one which saw goaltender Anthony Stolarz blast his team after a 4-3 overtime loss to the Seattle Kraken. That outing saw the 31-year-old goaltender ran into on several occasions, leading to some serious frustration afterward.
“Maybe we can take a page out of their book and start getting to the net,” Stolarz said. “I mean, for us, we like to go low to high and shoot. But for their goalie, it’s like playing catch in the yard. He’s seeing everything.”
That was one of several critiques Stolarz had of his group. Another saw him call out William Nylander, albeit not by name, for his effort on the over-time winning goal by Kraken defenceman Josh Mahura.
“A lot of guys have been here for a while. [In] overtime, you can’t let someone beat you up the ice there,” Stolarz said. “Gets a clear-cut breakaway. One minute left, you want to be on the ice in that situation, you got to work hard. Got to work back. And it cost us a point there.”
On Monday, Stolarz met with reporters and explained that he talked to Nylander after Saturday’s game. From the sounds of it, his comments were nothing more than frustration, and the two are completely fine with one another.
“I pulled Willy aside, we had a conversation,” Stolarz revealed. “He’s someone I admire and someone I respect deeply… he pushes me, I push him. We’re a family in here and we’re looking to push each other and get to our ultimate goal at the end of the day.”
Anthony Stolarz on his convo with William Nylander after Saturday’s game against Seattle:
“I pulled Willy aside, we had a conversation. He’s someone I admire and someone I respect deeply… he pushes me, I push him. We’re a family in here and we’re looking to push each other and…
— Anna Dua (@AnnaNoelleDua) October 20, 2025
Auston Matthews was also asked about the comments on Monday, and didn’t seem to take any issue with what Stolarz had to say.
“We’re a veteran group. We’re all big boys,” Matthews said. “You don’t need to beat around the bush. It’s an easy conversation we all had & you just move on, close the door… We gotta be better, and we will be.”
Auston Matthews says Leafs talked things out in wake of Anthony Stolarz comments:
"We're a veteran group. We're all big boys. You don't need to beat around the bush. It's an easy conversation we all had & you just move on, close the door … We gotta be better & we will be"
— Mark Masters (@markhmasters) October 20, 2025
Despite a bit of an up-and-down start to the season, the Leafs still sit third in the Atlantic Division with a 3-2-1 record. They’ll be looking to improve on that on Tuesday night in a game against Jack Hughes and the New Jersey Devils.