Last season, the Toronto Maple Leafs won a division title for the first time since 2021 during the realigned divisions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Leafs made it to the second round, and forced a Game 7 against the Florida Panthers, but lost. To make matters sting that much worse, the Panthers went on to repeat as Stanley Cup champions.
Even though the Leafs lost Mitch Marner this offseason, they entered this season as the Panthers' main competition for the Atlantic Division. After all, the Panthers managed to retain all of their impending free agents to keep their core together for the foreseeable future. Florida, however, is dealing with a huge injury bug, as star Matthew Tkachuk is sidelined until December, while Aleksander Barkov is out for the season due to a torn ACL and MCL in his right knee.
The Panthers took another hit on Wednesday, as defenseman Dmitry Kulikov underwent surgery for a labral tear. Due to this, Kulikov will be out for five months.
Maple Leafs' chance of repeating as Atlantic Division champs strong as ever after Panthers injury bug strikes again
Yes, the Panthers roster is still incredibly deep. And yes, the Panthers have a 3-1-0 record through the first four games. But this is the perfect chance for the Maple Leafs to secure some much-needed wins. After all, the player returning the soonest is Tkachuk, but that won't be until December. The games early this season could very well make a difference at the end of the year
The Maple Leafs are 2-2-0 through the first four games of the season. There are promising wins, such as their season-opener against the Montreal Canadiens and their 7-4 win over the Nashville Predators. The latter game saw William Nylander have a breakout game after being called out by head coach Craig Berube, scoring one goal and recording two assists.
However, the team had two concerning losses against the Detroit Red Wings. One of those losses saw Toronto outshoot Detroit 40-15, yet they lost 3-2.
The Leafs have the likes of the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens ahead of them in the standings for first place. The Bruins and Canadiens were not expected to be locked-in playoff contenders this year, so there is plenty of time for the Leafs to catch up.
There is still so much season left for the Leafs to build up their resume and add to their point total. Considering the injuries the Panthers are dealing with, they have no excuse not to get past them in the division standings. It certainly helps that they have a somewhat favorable schedule in the near future, such as back-to-back games against the Buffalo Sabres and a Nov. 15 matchup against the Chicago Blackhawks.