Toronto Maple Leafs 2016-17 Season
Record: 40-27-15 – 95 points (Finished 4th in the Atlantic Division {2nd Wild Card Spot} and 8th in the Eastern Conference)
Grade: A-
Review: Wow! What a season this was, this season was so much fun to be a Toronto Maple Leafs fan that’s for sure. The Toronto Maple Leafs as you can see and probably remember, they finally made the playoffs in a full NHL season for the first time since the 2003-04 season.
The reason why I graded this season an A- is simply because this team was made up of countless rookies making their NHL debut as well as some veteran players surrounding them, and they did not disappoint that is for sure. They had no expectations entering the 2016-17 season after finishing dead last in the league the season prior. No one was thinking they’d make playoffs, they just wanted the Toronto Maple Leafs to somewhat play like they’re trying and maybe finish close to making the playoffs, but this team surpassed expectations that’s for sure.
40 win season, 95 points, countless rookies playing amazing in their rookie year. Remember Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, and William Nylander? They had a phenomenal rookie campaign, let’s go over those 3 players stats from that year.
Auston Matthews – 40G 29A 69 PTS
Mitch Marner – 19G 42A 61 PTS
William Nylander – 22G 39A 61 PTS
With them making the playoffs they were matched up with the Presidents Trophy winner Washington Capitals… sounds scary right, well I was scared. 118 point Capitals team who have been in the playoffs multiple times playing against a 95 point Maple Leaf team filled with rookies, who no one expected them to make playoffs.
One thing I will say is… WOW AGAIN, they pushed the Capitals to 6 games but ultimately came up short in the first round, but this was something they could build from having the experience of doing so well in the season, making playoffs, pushing the Capitals to 6 games as well. (Stats from hockey-reference.com)