Leafs Send Hildeby Back to AHL Marlies After Emergency Recall

Anthony Stolarz took a puck to the throat from William Nylander during warmups Saturday night before Toronto's game against the Ottawa Senators, and the ripple effect reached the AHL by Monday morning. Dennis Hildeby was recalled from the Toronto Marlies on an emergency basis, only to be sent right back down to the AHL affiliate once the crisis passed.

Stolarz took the puck to the throat during warmups before Saturday's game against the Ottawa Senators, forcing him to miss the start and head to the hospital for precautionary imaging. Joseph Woll was then forced to play his second game in as many days and made 38 saves in the team's 5-2 loss to the Senators. Stolarz was later reported to be released from the hospital and met the team on the plane. Coach Craig Berube told reporters after the game, "He'll be meeting us at the plane, I think he's doing ok. He got evaluated there [at the hospital] so I don't exactly know what's going on yet, but he's supposedly meeting us at the plane."

Stolarz took part in Monday's practice and was a regular participant on the ice. He was seen wearing a neck guard during that session. Even so, the Leafs kept Hildeby on the active roster long enough to cover the immediate uncertainty, with Woll having taken on a much larger workload throughout March, making Hildeby a candidate to start Tuesday's game against the Boston Bruins. Hildeby did not attend Monday's practice.

The transaction now cycles back the other direction. In 19 NHL games this season, Hildeby carries a 5-6-4 record with a .912 save percentage and a 2.84 goals-against average; in 17 AHL games with the Marlies, he has posted a 7-5-5 record with a .901 save percentage and a 2.54 goals-against average. Hildeby has statistically been the Leafs' best goaltender this season but hadn't played since Stolarz returned from a nerve issue in late January, and he leads the team's netminders in save percentage at .912.

The 6-foot-7 goaltender got his first taste of NHL action in 2024-25, only two years after being drafted in the fourth round of the 2022 NHL Draft, and has shown through 19 games in 2025-26 that he is ready to be an NHL goaltender. If not for the numbers game with both Joseph Woll and Anthony Stolarz signed to multi-year deals, he would probably still be with the team.

The broader roster picture is bleak for Toronto. The Maple Leafs have 11 games left and are all but eliminated from playoff contention, meaning there is no need for Stolarz to play through any discomfort. The team has lost 12 of its last 14 games, and the back end of this season is shaping up as an extended audition for a goaltending depth chart that has been reshuffled all year. What happens with Stolarz over the next 24 hours will determine how long Hildeby remains with the NHL club.

For now, Hildeby heads back to the Marlies carrying numbers that argue he has already outgrown the assignment.