At Least the Toronto Maple Leafs Aren't the Sabres, Who Are the Worst Team Ever

The Toronto Maple Leafs and the Buffalo Sabres were both bad around the same time, and both teams acquired elite talent at around the same time.

But in the intervening years, the Toronto Maple Leafs have been vastly superior, despite only winning a single playoff series in that time and perpetually disappointing every single person who cares about their team.

The Athletic recently did an exersize where they alloted points for Cups, Finals appearances, division wins, making the playoffs etc. to figure out who the best teams where since the NHL had a salary cap.

To the surprise of nobody, the Leafs were among the worst teams on the list, joining the likes of perpetual losers the Columbus Blue Jackets (who I'm just going to ignore for now, and probably ever) and the Buffalo Sabres.

There are many reasons the Leafs are bad, but if you're reading this in August, you know them off by heart.

The Leafs are so, so, so bad.

But somehow the Sabres are worse.

At Least the Toronto Maple Leafs Aren't the Sabres, Who Are the Worst Team Ever

It must be horrible to be worse than the Leafs, because the Leafs are pretty bad. We love them, and that just makes it worse.

The Leafs are so bad that even with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner - two of the best players to ever play on a 100 year old franchise - they can't find any kind of team success. They even lose in such stupid ways that their fans (rightly I think it turns out) give them absolutely no benifit of the doubt.

Get goalied? Suffer injuries? Too damn bad because you've done it to us too many times. It's like a never cry wolf situation, but only with a hockey team that plays well and loses instead of lies.

But imagine being the Buffalo Sabres.

The Leafs drafted Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner, in 2016 and 2015 respectively, and even though they haven't won anything with them yet, can you imagine if those two players had already won Stanley Cups with other teams?

Sabres fans can, which is why they are the worst team ever.

Sam Reinhart was drafted second overall in 2014, traded to Florida in 2021, and won the Stanley Cup this past spring.

Jack Eichel was drafted second overall in 2015, traded to Las Vegas in 2022, and won the Stanley Cup in 2023.

I think if Matthews and Marner already had Stanley Cups with other teams I would have to stop watchign hockey altogether.

Just saying.