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Toronto Maple Leafs: Atlantic Division Power Rankings

By James Tanner

TORONTO, ON - JANUARY 7: Auston Matthews #34 of the Toronto Maple Leafs talks with teammate Mitch Marner #16 before the start of the second period against the Nashville Predators at the Scotiabank Arena on January 7, 2019 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Mark Blinch/NHLI via Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON - JANUARY 7: Auston Matthews #34 of the Toronto Maple Leafs talks with teammate Mitch Marner #16 before the start of the second period against the Nashville Predators at the Scotiabank Arena on January 7, 2019 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Mark Blinch/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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Toronto Maple Leafs
TORONTO, ON – APRIL 4: Mitch Marner #16 of the Toronto Maple Leafs celebrates his goal against the Tampa Bay Lightning during the first period at the Scotiabank Arena on April 4, 2019 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Mark Blinch/NHLI via Getty Images) /

The Toronto Maple Leafs finished third in last year’s Atlantic Division standings.

That’s not quite as bad as bad as it sounds, since the Toronto Maple Leafs finished seventh overall in the entire league.

But if they want to advance beyond the first round, they’re going to need to try and win their division because, due to the strength of the Atlantic vs the NHL’s other three divisions, and because of the NHL’s less than ideal playoff seeding system, the teams that finish second and third in the Atlantic will have the toughest road possible to the Stanley Cup Final.

Winning the division is paramount, but it’s also incredibly difficult.  The Lightning were the best team the NHL has seen in years last season, and the Bruins weren’t far off.

Additionally, Florida, Buffalo and Montreal all seem like they’re on upward trajectories.

The division is top heavy though, because it is also home to the NHL’s two biggest dud teams – the Detroit Red Wings and the Ottawa Senators.

While both teams have started to build nice cores for the future, 2019-20 is almost guaranteed to see them competing for the title of worst team in the NHL.

Though if we’re honest, even though the Red Wings are terrible, even they may seem like the Lightning compared to the Senators.

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