The Toronto Maple Leafs finisehed the regular season by losing their fourth game in a row.
To add insult to injury, both Toronto Maple Leafs superstars, Auston Matthews and William Nylander, failed to hit their respective end-of-season goals (i,e 70 goals and 100 points).
The Leafs will be looking to put all that behind them Saturday when the second-season starts and the team gets a fresh slate.
After the Leafs fought through an intense 82-game gruelling schedule for the 2023-24 NHL season, what they got as their hard-earned reward was what many had been hoping for all along, which was a chance at redemption by facing the feisty Boston Bruins once again in the playoffs.
As the Leafs prepare for their first round battle against the Bruins in this year’s Stanley Cup Playoffs, let’s take a closer look at how they matchup against each other by the numbers.
Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Boston Bruins Playoff Preview: By the Numbers
Overall Stats
Overall Stats (as of April 17, 2024) | Toronto Maple Leafs | Boston Bruins |
|---|---|---|
Record | 46-26-10 (3rd in Atlantic Division) | 47-20-15 (2nd in Atlantic Division) |
Points | 102 | 109 |
Home Record | 22-15-4 | 24-11-6 |
Road Record | 24-11-6 | 23-9-9 |
Goals For | 303 | 267 |
Goals Against | 263 | 224 |
Power Play | 24.0% (7th in NHL) | 22.2% (13th in NHL) |
Penalty Kill | 76.9% (23rd in NHL) | 82.5% (7th in NHL) |
Shots per Game | 32.6 | 29.3 |
Shots Against per Game | 29.8 | 30.5 |
Looking at the overall performing stats for both teams, the Bruins finished with the better regular season record, thus securing home-ice advantage against the Leafs in the first round. However, with both teams sporting better road records than at home this season, the advantage could actually be in the Leafs favour instead.
The Leafs have been the more profilic scoring team by tallying more than 300 goals on the year, which put them at the top of the league. Whereas the Bruins have been stronger at preventing goals, surrendering less than 2.8 per game, ranking them among the top-10 in the league. So it looks like it will be a battle between the top offense and one of the top defenses and goaltending in the NHL.
In terms of special teams, the Leafs hold the advantage with a top-10 power play, whereas the Bruins’ stingy defense gives them the advantage with a top-10 penalty kill.
Finally, Toronto often outshot their opponents during the regular season, while Boston were usually outshot by their opponents instead. So the Leafs can attempt to use that to their advantage to keep the pressure on the Bruins to maintain control and momentum in the game.
Overall, it appears as though both teams are quite balanced, with each having their own strengths and weaknesses split among various categories.
Head-to-Head Stats
Head-to-Head Stats | Toronto Maple Leafs | Boston Bruins |
|---|---|---|
Record | 0-2-2 | 4-0-0 |
Goals For | 7 | 15 |
Goals Against | 15 | 7 |
Shots | 137 | 129 |
Power Play | 1-for-11 (9.1%) | 3-for-10 (30%) |
Penalty Kill | 7-for-10 (70%) | 10-for-11 (90.9%) |
However, when taking a look at the numbers from their head-to-head contests, the Bruins absolutely dominated the Leafs in all aspects of the game this season.
Not only did the Bruins take all four games in the season series, they outscored the Leafs by a wide margin and won the special teams battle in a landslide. The only thing the Leafs did better was putting the puck on the net, but unfortunately it didn’t lead to better results.
But what the Leafs can look back at to serve as inspiration for the team was their four-game sweep of the Ottawa Senators during the 2000-01 NHL playoffs despite being swept by the Senators during the regular season that very same year.
If the Leafs can make history repeat itself, but this time against the Bruins, then the buds could be well on their way to a legitimate Stanley Cup run this year as well. (All stats from NHL.com and hockey-reference.com)
Nevertheless, no matter what the numbers say, everyone starts with a clean slate once the NHL playoffs begin.
So it will be up to the Leafs to surprise us for once in making their own history with a successful Stanley Cup run this time around. Go Leafs Go!