Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Anthony Stolarz will make his long-awaited return to the lineup against the Seattle Kraken on Thursday.

Stolarz has been out of the lineup since December 12, when he suffered a lower-body injury against the Anaheim Ducks. He was later placed on injured reserve after undergoing a procedure to remove a ‘loose pebble’ in his knee which was revealed to have no structural damage.

The projected recovery timeline of four to six weeks meant that he was expected to return right around this time. Stolarz has slowly started to ramp up his conditioning and has been a regular participant in practices in recent days. He was at the morning skate on Thursday occupying the starter’s net while Joseph Woll was the other goalie on the ice taking individual reps, which seemed to indicate that Stolarz was nearing his return.

Having Stolarz back in the lineup is a huge boost for the Leafs, who enjoyed having a strong crease rotation with him and Woll. Woll has certainly done his best to carry the load while the former has been recovering, though the third-string options had their warts that forced the team to lean more on Woll. He has surpassed his career-high in games played, so fatigue was going to become a concern but those fears ought to subside now that Stolarz is back in the mix.

Stolarz was playing exceptional hockey before his injury, where he went 9-5-2 while recording a .927 save percentage, a 2.12 GAA, and a shutout across 17 starts. Many believed that Stolarz should’ve received Vezina Trophy consideration because of his excellence and it’s understandable why that’s the case despite having a smaller workload compared to the other potential candidates.

Stolarz joined the Leafs this past offseason after winning the Stanley Cup with the Florida Panthers, inking a two-year deal with an AAV of $2.5 million. Given how well he has played this season, there is an argument to be made that he is the best signing of the 2024 offseason. If he can help guide his new team to win his second straight Cup, there will be no doubts.