<p>Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz will almost certainly start the first round of the playoffs, and he&#8217;s solely focused on the upcoming <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/nobody-more-excited-return-battle-ontario-steven-lorentz">Battle of Ontario</a>.</p>
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<p>Stolarz recorded 35 saves in a <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/4-takeaways-toronto-maple-leafs-buffalo-sabres-stolarz-elite-form-atlantic-title-milestone-marner-matthews">4-0 victory over the Buffalo Sabres</a> on Tuesday, as the Maple Leafs <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/toronto-maple-leafs-clinch-atlantic-division-ottawa-senators-first-round">clinched the Atlantic Division</a> for the first time, locking in a first-round date with the Ottawa Senators. After the win, Stolarz provided a fiery preview of what lies ahead.</p>
<p>&#8220;It&#8217;ll be fun, for sure,&#8221; Stolarz said. &#8220;They&#8217;re a hungry team. I just think we have to continue to do what we&#8217;re doing right now. I think we feel good about our game. It’s going to be a bloodbath, it’s going to be a little bit of a war, so we’ll be ready.&#8221;</p>
<p>Stolarz enters the playoffs in terrific form, recording three shutouts in his past four starts, while winning eight consecutive games. The 31-year-old boasts a 21-8-3 record, with a league-leading.926 save percentage and 2.14 goals against average.</p>
<p>&#8220;I mean, to be able to start the playoffs on home ice, in front of our home fans, it&#8217;s massive for us,&#8221; Stolarz said of winning the division. &#8220;You get that last change, you get that Game 7 home ice, so it&#8217;s quite an accomplishment for this group, and we&#8217;re super excited about it.&#8221;</p>
<p>Stolarz has pulled away from the competition this season when he&#8217;s been available and is a true No. 1 starting goaltender that the Maple Leafs have often lacked in previous years. Although Joseph Woll has performed well in a true tandem role, Stolarz is the undeniable choice to start Game 1 and beyond, during the most critical year of the Maple Leafs&#8217; window.</p>
<p>It&#8217;s a different role for Stolarz, as he served as Sergei Bobrovsky&#8217;s backup last season, as the Florida Panthers won their first-ever Stanley Cup. Stolarz is now tasked with leading the Maple Leafs through a deep playoff run, which will have a direct effect on the makeup of the team going forward. It&#8217;s going to be a bloodbath, as most true battles are.</p>
<h3>Sponsored by bet365</h3>
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Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz will almost certainly start the first round of the playoffs, and he's solely focused on the upcoming <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/nobody-more-excited-return-battle-ontario-steven-lorentz">Battle of Ontario</a>.
<div class="bam-inline-promotion-block" data-max-length="2" data-placement-id="2106" data-context="web-content-promocard" data-property-id="324"></div>
Stolarz recorded 35 saves in a <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/4-takeaways-toronto-maple-leafs-buffalo-sabres-stolarz-elite-form-atlantic-title-milestone-marner-matthews">4-0 victory over the Buffalo Sabres</a> on Tuesday, as the Maple Leafs <a href="https://theleafsnation.com/news/toronto-maple-leafs-clinch-atlantic-division-ottawa-senators-first-round">clinched the Atlantic Division</a> for the first time, locking in a first-round date with the Ottawa Senators. After the win, Stolarz provided a fiery preview of what lies ahead.

"It'll be fun, for sure," Stolarz said. "They're a hungry team. I just think we have to continue to do what we're doing right now. I think we feel good about our game. It’s going to be a bloodbath, it’s going to be a little bit of a war, so we’ll be ready."

Stolarz enters the playoffs in terrific form, recording three shutouts in his past four starts, while winning eight consecutive games. The 31-year-old boasts a 21-8-3 record, with a league-leading.926 save percentage and 2.14 goals against average.

"I mean, to be able to start the playoffs on home ice, in front of our home fans, it's massive for us," Stolarz said of winning the division. "You get that last change, you get that Game 7 home ice, so it's quite an accomplishment for this group, and we're super excited about it."

Stolarz has pulled away from the competition this season when he's been available and is a true No. 1 starting goaltender that the Maple Leafs have often lacked in previous years. Although Joseph Woll has performed well in a true tandem role, Stolarz is the undeniable choice to start Game 1 and beyond, during the most critical year of the Maple Leafs' window.

It's a different role for Stolarz, as he served as Sergei Bobrovsky's backup last season, as the Florida Panthers won their first-ever Stanley Cup. Stolarz is now tasked with leading the Maple Leafs through a deep playoff run, which will have a direct effect on the makeup of the team going forward. It's going to be a bloodbath, as most true battles are.
<h3>Sponsored by bet365</h3>
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