The Toronto Maple Leafs are a Stanley Cup contender but how do they compare to the last decade of champions?
Winning the Stanley Cup is the hardest accomplishment in professional sports and the Toronto Maple Leafs know this far too well, having not won since 1967.
Although every Stanley Cup winning team is different, they all have similar DNA.
For example, there are eight qualities that every team needs to win a championship:
- The Leader
- Game-Breaker (Batman)
- Robin
- Veteran who’s never won
- Star Defenseman
- Unsung Hero
- Goaltender
- Adversity or Theme
Every one of these traits is necessary for a team to win. Without one of these, the championship chemistry falls apart.
You may have the best player in the world but without a supporting cast, they’re not going to be able to carry the team themselves. If this were the NBA, a team may be able to get the job done, but in the NHL, it’s a completely different beast.
Let’s look at all eight of these qualities and see how the Toronto Maple Leafs compare to the past 10 championship teams.