Red Wings rivals ink long term goaltender Anthony Stolarz to contract four-year extension

Once again, the competition in the Atlantic Division will be very high next season. Even if the Toronto Maple Leafs are expected to fall a bit in the standings after losing Mitch Marner, and the same thing could happen to the Florida Panthers now that they've lost Aleksander Barkov long-term, other teams will make strides this year.

Today, massive news concerning the Leafs suggests that they shouldn't be taken lightly.

Although it hasn't been confirmed yet by the organization, the Leafs appear to be closing on a four-year extension around the $4M AAV range for their number one goalie, Anthony Stolarz.

The news was shared by both Elliotte Friedman and Kevin Weekes on social media:

Stolarz's current contract will expire at the end of the season, and Treliving didn't want to risk losing him like what happened with Marner in the summer.

This shows the Leafs' big faith in the goalie. Stolarz had a great first year in Toronto last season, tallying a 21-8-3 record, a 2.14 GAA and a 0.926 SV%, as well as a 2.19 GAA and a .901 SV% in seven playoff games.

With the Montreal Canadiens and Ottawa Senators among the teams to watch in the division as they reached another level of their rebuild last year, the Buffalo Sabres looking to finally have a breakout year, and the Tampa Bay Lightning, who will once again compete for a playoff spot, the competition level will be high.

For the Wings, who'll need to think about extending Sebastian Cossa and Trey Augustine in the coming years unless a trade happens, that contract is good news.

Update:

The Maple Leafs have extended Stolarz to a 4-year, $15M deal.