Toronto Maple Leafs: All-Time Starting Line-Up

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The Toronto Maple Leafs season has been postponed so there’s no better time to debate the Leafs all-time starting line-up.

One thing that makes the Toronto Maple Leafs franchise so special is it’s history.

Sure, the team hasn’t won a Stanley Cup since 1967, but the team has seen plenty of superstars since.

To breakdown each decade after that Stanley Cup, Lanny McDonald and Darryl Sittler led the Leafs only missing the playoffs once in the 70s. Harold Ballard then ruined the team in the 80s, with Cliff Fletcher, Pat Burns and Doug Gimour regaining fans hope in the 90s.

The early 2000s teams came very close to reaching the Finals, but came up short, which became the consistent narrative at the end of the decade.

The team continued to be a laughing stock midway through the 2010s until the ‘Shana-plan’ arrived and the Leafs have been relevant ever since.

Although 53 years of history has just been explained in a few short sentences, there have been hundreds of great players who have worn the Blue-and-White since 1917.

With that said, we’re going to list the all-time staring line-up for the Leafs:

Tim Bernhardt #1 and Wendel Clark #17 of the Toronto Maple Leafs – 1985 (Photo by Graig Abel/Getty Images) /

Toronto Maple Leafs All-Time Starting Line-Up: Forwards

Center: Auston Matthews

The Leafs have been blessed with a number of great centers over the years, but Auston Matthews is the best one in Leafs history. 40, 37, 34 and 47 are his goal totals in four years with the Leafs.

Matthews was going to become the fourth ever player to score 50 goals with the Leafs if the season continued, and it was possible he would break Rick Vaive’s record of 54 in a single season. With another four years left on his contract, Matthews is on pace to have his #34 retired when he’s finished playing.

Left Wing: Wendel Clark

Another former 1st overall pick leads the Toronto Maple Leafs all-time list as the team’s starting left-winger. Although a back-injury somewhat limited his ability, he was a force to be reckon with every night.

Clark’s 1993-94 season is one of the best seasons in Leafs history with 46 goals and 76 points in only 64 games. He also added 115 penalty minutes en route to a long playoff run. Clark could hit, fight and score, which made him a tremendous leader and one of the best to ever play in Toronto.

Right Wing: George Armstrong

Spanning four different decades, Armstrong played 1188 games in Toronto which is the most in team history. As the team captain for 13 seasons, Armstrong played in seven all-star games and won four Stanley Cups with the Leafs.

You could argue that there are a few more skillful right-wingers in Leafs history, but Armstrong’s leadership and winning pedigree makes him a lock for the all-time starting line-up.

TORONTO, CANADA – DECEMBER 4: Jean-Sebastien Giguere #35 and Tomas Kaberle (Photo by Abelimages / Getty Images) /

Toronto Maple Leafs All-Time Starting Line-Up: Defense

Defense: Borje Salming

The left-handed defenseman from Sweden was a staple on the Leafs blue-line from 1973-1989. In 1099 career games with the Leafs, Salming’s 620 assists is still the most in team history with no active player even close.

Salming’s career was not only respected by Leafs fans but by hockey’s elitist. In 1996, Salming was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame where his name will live forever as one of the best European defenseman to ever play the game.

Defense: Tomas Kaberle

Not only is Kaberle just a great human-being, he was one of the top defenseman to ever play in Toronto.

Kaberle was always a player you’d yell at your TV to shoot the puck, but he knew what he was doing on the blue-line. Kaberle would consistently have over 40 points each season, with his best season coming in 2005-06 with nine goals and 67 points.

TORONTO, ON – JANUARY 05: Statues of former Toronto Maple Leafs goalies Johnny Bower and Turk Broda enshrined in Legends Row. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images) /

Toronto Maple Leafs All-Time Starting Line-Up: Goaltender

Goaltender: Turk Broda

This was the hardest choice of any position to make. If it’s Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals and you have one goaltender to choose from, who would you go with?

Well, Broda is actually only one of few goaltenders in NHL history to have actually played in a Game 7 final and have gone onto win. In 1942, Broda helped lead the Leafs come back from a 3-0 series deficit to defeat the Detroit Red Wings for the Stanley Cup.

The NHL in his day is an entirely different game than it is today. However, with the game’s current equipment, you’d have to imagine Broda would be even better. Broda leads the Leafs with 301 career wins and 61 career shutouts, with no active or retired player even close.

Not only does Broda hold those records, but he continued to play for the Leafs after missing three seasons due to fighting in World War II. Any player that can leave the NHL to fight in the War and come back without missing a beat is special.

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You could make a case for Jaques Plante, Johnny Bower, Felix Potvin or Curtis Joseph for the starting position, but with two Vezina trophies, and five Stanley Cup’s, Broda is the Leafs all-time starting goaltender.

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