TORONTO (AP) — Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz left Game 1 of the team’s second round series against Florida on Monday night with an apparent head injury.
Stolarz took an elbow to the back of the head from Panthers forward Sam Bennett shortly before his departure. He also took a puck to the mask, knocking it off his head, earlier.
“Elbow to the head, clear as day,” coach Craig Berube said afterward when asked bout Bennett making contact with Stolarz, who he added was being evaluated. “I’m not sure why there’s not a call on it. I get it. They miss calls. But it’s clearly a penalty.”
Florida coach Paul Maurice said officials were nearby and did not believe it to be a penalty.
“Hopeful for Anthony and his health,” Maurice said. “Love that guy and hope he gets better real fast.”
Television replays appeared to show Stolarz vomiting into a bucket by the team bench before leaving midway through the second period. The team said he was under evaluation.
Backup Joseph Woll entered for his first NHL game action since April 17, with Toronto leading 4-1. Woll allowed three goals on 20 shots, but the Leafs held on to beat the defending Stanley Cup champions 5-4.
“Hopefully the league will handle it and protect our players,” said Matthew Knies, who scored the winning goal.
Stolarz, who has a Cup ring from backing up Sergei Bobrovsky last year, played all six games in the Leafs’ first-round series win over Ottawa, posting a 2.21 goals-against average and .901 save percentage. The 31-year-old won 12 of 14 starts going back to the regular season before getting injured.
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AP NHL playoffs: https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cup and https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
