Toronto Maple Leafs are Primed for Years of Contender Status

The Toronto Maple Leafs never make things easy for their fans.

With a 3-2 lead in the best of seven series, the Toronto Maple Leafs were unable to win at home on Sunday to advance to the second round of the Playoffs.

While disappointing, these are two evenly matched teams and it seemed to always be a foregone conclusion that, like their previous two series, it would go seven games.

The Key difference here is that in the past two series, the Leafs were underdogs who overachieved.

This year, they’re the better team.

If not for Boston’s PP scoring at a higher-than-can-last rate, the Leafs would already have won the series.

Now, obviously a seven game series doesn’t provide the time for numbers and averages to correct themselves, but the fact is that if you win at even-strength, you will win more often than not. It doesn’t mean the Leafs will win for sure, but it does give them a good chance.

Toronto Maple Leafs vs Boston Bruins

If the Leafs could kill a penalty, they’d already have won.  Why doesn’t Babcock have some centres on the ice? Are the other PK players so good that it’s worth sitting Matthews and Tavares for huge chunks of the game?

Why does Patrick Marleau play so much? Why do broadcasters on TV hold such a grudge against William Nylander, but ignore the bad play of Mitch Marner?

How is it possible that Zdeno Chara is allowed to play in this game, after leaving his feet to head-shot Trevor Moore in game six?

How in the hell does Connor Brown play so much?  Why can’t Tavares score a goal?

Could Morgan Rielly possibly play any better (other than one extremely ill-advised giveaway late in game six, he was the team’s best player b far)?

The answer to these and many more questions should be known later tonight.

These teams have played a hell of a series, and win or lose, the Leafs have to see this as a successful playoffs because they played well enough to win.  Sometimes the luck doesn’t go your way, and sometimes the refs seem to have it in for you.

With virtually every other “best team in the league” going out, whoever wins out of tonight’s duel games sevens (Sharks vs Knights is the other one) will be the two best remaining teams in the league.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have had a good – if trying – season and advancing to the second round would be so big for them, but if it doesn’t happen, let’s not lose sight of the fact that if not for some luck in the past two seasons, this would be the team’s first post-rebuild playoff series.

The Leafs have gone out two previous seasons in round one, but those were years in which they were overachieving and in rebuild mode.

Win or lose tonight, this is a special team primed for years of top-notch competitive hockey.