Anthony Stolarz's mask was popped off via a shot late in the third period against the New York Rangers, and instead of calling for an official, he bounced back up to make a save on J.T. Miller.
"I kind of just saw the rebound go to the side, and as I was going, the helmet kind of flew off, so just trying to be a competitor and slide across," Stolarz said after Toronto's 2-1 overtime win over the Rangers. "Obviously, it's not an ideal situation, but at that stage of the game, you're just trying to do anything to keep the puck out of the net."
Rule 9.6 (Helmets) in the NHL rulebook states: "When a goalkeeper has lost his helmet and/or face mask and his team has control of the puck, play shall be stopped immediately to allow the goalkeeper the opportunity to regain his helmet and/or face mask. When the opposing team has control of the puck, play shall only be stopped if there is no immediate and impending scoring opportunity."
It's a situation that could have gone horribly wrong had the shot come up and gotten Stolarz in the head area. Luckily, it didn't. But it's not the first time a goaltender has lost their mask and had to make a save this season.
lost his mask and kept going to make the save pic.twitter.com/fUVHSK5N4d
— Omar (@TicTacTOmar) October 17, 2025
Vegas Golden Knights netminder Adin Hill took a slapshot off the mask on Oct. 14 against the Calgary Flames. The play continued, with Hill sliding across to make a stop on the rebound. The goaltender remained in the game for the rest of the first period before exiting the game.
When discussing the play post game, Stolarz brought up the Hill incident.
"Hopefully, we can find a compromise. It's not like goalies are trying to knock our helmets off. I mean, without the buckle, you can't really see the puck. You can't really track or do anything because as soon as you move your head, it falls off," Stolarz said.
"So, hopefully, the league can kind of look at it, talk to some goalies or people who have knowledge of the position, and we can kind of come to some sort of compromise where our safety isn't put at risk there."
just another day at the office pic.twitter.com/3S2GjeYUp5
— Omar (@TicTacTOmar) October 17, 2025
Stolarz wasn't the only player on the Maple Leafs who shared their dislike for the rule.
"I didn't know about (the rule) until they came over and explained it to us," Auston Matthews said.
"I mean, I don't know. It's tough because his helmet's off and J.T. Miller's coming down the slot with a one-timer. I don't know. Thankfully, he didn't hit him there. But yeah, I was completely unaware of the rule. I thought the second the helmet's off, the play was going to be dead."
William Nylander: "I think, it's a goalie without his helmet, I mean, that's so dangerous. It should be blown off right away. I mean, I guess you could argue that sometimes a goalie can try and shake his helmet off or whatever, but I mean, I think that's pretty dangerous."
Matthew Knies said he was "a little scared" when Stolarz's mask came off and there was no whistle blown right away. "I don't know how it came to that. I thought it was supposed to be blown, but I don't know. It was a shocker for sure, for everyone, I think."
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Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube shared the same sentiment as the players: blow the play dead once a goaltender's mask is off.
"It's a tough call. I mean, your goalie loses his mask. He's in a very vulnerable position. And a position to get really hurt. I don't think anybody wants to see that, ever. So in my opinion, blow it down. But that's me."
Despite that scare in the third period, Stolarz was strong for Toronto. The 31-year-old stopped 28 of 29 shots in the win over the Rangers, improving his record to 2-2-0, and his save percentage to .907 through four games.
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