FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — How Toronto Maple Leafs fans think about Joseph Woll this summer will depend on how the goaltender handles this next week of hockey.
These are the moments that define an athlete’s reputation.
Hey, we saw it one year ago with this same goaltender.
Woll was lights out in the two-plus games he played against the Boston Bruins, coming in for relief of an embattled Ilya Samsonov. Woll backstopped Toronto to consecutive 2-1 wins and posted a sparkling .964 save percentage to stave off elimination in that series.
He was awesome.
Then he pulled up lame, couldn’t dress for Game 7, Samsonov lost, and the “injury prone” tag followed Woll all the way into training camp.
This week, Woll has been gifted an opportunity to rewrite his own rep.
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Yes, starter Anthony Stolarz was excellent in Round 1. And yes, Stolarz got wronged by Sam Bennett’s greasy, unpunished, potentially series-altering chicken wing.
But to think Stolarz — who is progressing from his head injury, according to coach Craig Berube, but has yet to put on a pair of skates — is playing another game against the Florida Panthers this season is to fool yourself.
This is Woll’s net.
And, considering the generous run support and commitment to shot blocking in front of him, the 26-year-old must do a better job of protecting it than he did in Game 3.
“It’s tough. It’s very tough. But he’s done a really good job of handling it, and he’s made a lot of really key saves for us. So, really impressed with Joe,” says Max Pacioretty, empathizing with a relatively unproven goalie getting thrust into relief work.
“It’s a very difficult situation to be in, but he’s handled it extremely well. And I’ve made a point of talking about how hard he works, and I think that’s a big reason why he’s having success.”
To his credit, Woll (2-1, .869) has marginally outduelled future Hall of Famer Sergei Bobrovsky (1-2, .840) through three games.
But in an airtight series in which all three outcomes have been decided by a single goal, a stinker like the one Woll allowed on fourth-liner Jonah Gadjovich Friday night in Sunrise can prove the difference.
“You just shake it off. Bounces go both ways, and that’s hockey. So, just reset,” says Woll, who smartly has no interest in self-flagellation this time of year. “Did the same thing as I always do and just came out on the wrong side.”
The good news for Woll and the Maple Leafs here is that Bobrovsky hasn’t come close to reaching his Stanley Cup run level (.906). Bobrovsky’s .875 save percentage in these playoffs sits as his worst in any of the 11 post-seasons in which he’s had at least one start.
A window has opened for Woll to be the better goaltender over the next two (or three or four) games and backstop Toronto to its first conference final in 23 years.
The Panthers, of course, are trying to make Woll’s life miserable. Same as they did with the first guy.
They’re driving the paint for screens and bumps and tips. And seeing prospect Dennis Hildeby or second-chance Matt Murray wearing the ballcap may be extra motivation.
“I’m not noticing it too much,” Woll says. “It’s expected in playoffs. Teams on both sides, you drive the net hard, and that’s part of the game.”
Matthew Knies has noticed, though.
“They’ve done a great job of it all series. You saw it last year, what they did in the playoffs. That’s how you score goals in the playoffs — to be around the net and make it difficult for the goalie,” Knies says.
“I’m trying to do that as much as possible. And I know they are, too. It’s going to be on our D to box out well and make sure our goalie can see it.”
Excellent in their own ways, Woll and Stolarz are different people, different goalies.
It would be hard to envision, say, Woll going on the attack with a crease pest in the same way Stolarz chopped and checked fruit fly Ridly Greig in Round 1. And while Stolarz is a confident player of the puck, eager to act like a third defenceman, Woll is still sharpening that skill.
The Panthers know it, and they’re purposely testing Woll with tricky dump-ins, daring him to either leave his post for an adventure or stay put and watch their fierce forecheck wreak havoc.
“Well, it’s difficult. I thought that a lot of those rims are up. They’re not on the ice. And that’s designed,” Berube explains.
“If they can get a good lick on it, they’re going to put it on the glass. It’s pretty tough for him to come out and play those. He did get to a lot of them. They’re comin’ hard. We know that. He’s going to have to make a decision quick and move it. That’s the bottom line.”
Simon Benoit says the defencemen must work with Woll — less vocal than Stolarz, by nature — to expedite D-zone exits.
“Talk to each other. Come back quicker, to make sure everybody has an option when they get the puck. Because they come hard,” Benoit says.
“They rim the puck hard, and sometimes they’re hard to get, backhand and forehand. So, he does what he can to help us, and we got to be there for him.”
The Maple Leafs need to pick Woll up a bit, sure.
But Woll needs to stand tall, too.
It’s not an overstatement to say the goalie is entering the most important week of his career.
Just be one save better than the guy at the other end.
“After the game, everybody’s upset,” Berube said on a sunny Saturday morning at the beach. “You can really let it go the other way, or you can grab it, fix it, make some adjustments, what we need to do better, and focus on getting that message through to the team.
“We’re always prepared for a long series. And we have an opportunity to go into the game tomorrow and get a split. And that’s what we got to focus on.”
From the net on out.
