Toronto Maple Leafs: Who Will Be the Most Likely To……
The Toronto Maple Leafs are a victim of their own success. (Finishing 4th overall is a very successful season, regardless of how badly the referees screw you in the playoffs).
The NHL pundits have not been kind to the Toronto Maple Leafs offseason, but traditionally they are extremely hostile to new ideas, and few teams have ever been more innovative in their thinking than the Leafs this summer with their goalies.
In addition to hating the Leafs extremely low-risk high-reward goaltending bet, the NHL Pundits punished the Leafs for not improving their team, even though improving on a team that finished fourth overall and dominated the Lightning in a series they were forced to win five games in order to advance from would be nearly impossible.
Take the hype surrounding the Senators. Everyone suddenly forgot that Pierre Dorian is one of the worst GMs in NHL history, and somehow thinks that Debrincat and Giroux are going to make that much of a difference. They won’t.
The Leafs won 21 more games than Ottawa last year, and even if Giroux and Debrincat are twice as good as people think, they aren’t adding 21 wins to that roster.
With that in mind, here is a list of things most likely to happen in the NHL in 2022.
Most Likely to…..
Win the Stanley Cup, Presidents Trophy, and Atlantic Division Title: The Toronto Maple Leafs.
Most likely to finish last: The New York Islanders.
Most likely to accidently be better than they thought: the Montreal Canadiens, who will ruin their chances at picking first overall when a roster filled with young talent is instantly much better than expected.
Most likely to drop off a cliff: The Florida Panthers who won’t come close to the 122 points they put up last season.
Most likely to win the Hart: Mitch Marner, who will pick up where he left off (which was the NHL’s best player from January on), is not the most likely winner, but he is my pick.
Most likely to win the scoring title: Connor McDavid is most likely, but Mitch Marner is going to do it anyways.
Most likely to advance past the first round: The Toronto Maple Leafs. It’s a guarantee at this point.
Most likely to breakout: William Nylander has been in the shadows too long and I’m calling a major breakout of 100 points this season.
Most Underrated Team: Vegas Golden Knights.
Most Likely to Shock People When They Are a Playoff Team: Seattle Kraken.
Biggest Bounce Back Player of the Year: Phillipp Grubauer.
Next. 3 Options for the Leafs If They Have to Trade Sandin. dark
Most Likely to Win Rookie of the Year: Owen Power.
Biggest Disappointment: Carolina Hurricanes / Calgary Flames