The pressure is on for the Toronto Maple Leafs once again. The playoffs are around the corner and the franchise will once again pick up the fight for its first Stanley Cup title since the ancient 1966-67 season.

The NHL consisted of six teams the last time the Leafs won the Stanley Cup. The Leafs have not even made it to the Stanley Cup Final since then.

The Leafs have a formidable team and they have the offensive skills to light up the scoreboard on a near every-game basis. They have the game's top goal scorer in Auston Matthews who may be able to reach the 70-goal mark if he can surge over the final four games of the season.

William Nylander has emerged as one of the best clutch scorers in the league with 40 goals while Mitch Marner is an elusive playmaker who plays with incredible balance and vision.

Despite their great offensive skills, the Leafs have been playoff busts for multiple seasons. They managed to beat the Tampa Bay Lightning in the opening round last year, and that was their first series victory since the 2004 postseason when they defeated the Ottawa Senators in the opening round before losing to the Philadelphia Flyers.

They would lose eight consecutive playoff series before they defeated the Lightning last year.

A battle with the physical Florida Panthers in the first round is likely

There are few postseason scenarios for the Leafs that are not nightmarish. The most likely first round matchup is with the Panthers, a team that defeated them in the second round last year.

Many thought that since the Leafs finally ended their first-round jinx, they might be on top of their game against the Panthers. Instead, they failed miserably and lost the series in five games.

Since the Leafs are in third place in the Atlantic Division in the final days of the regular season and the Panthers are in second place, Florida would have the home-ice advantage in the matchup. That would make the series quite challenging.

The Panthers are a tough and combative team, and they got the best of the Leafs last year by taking the physical battle to Toronto. Head coach Sheldon Keefe is keenly aware of the results, and he is depending on Morgan Rielly, Max Domi, Tyler Bertuzzi and Ryan Reaves to combat the Panthers' confidence and physical edge.

Bruins would also be a problem for the Maple Leafs

However, there is also a chance that the Maple Leafs could face the Boston Bruins in the first round, and that would be problematic. If the Bruins were overtaken by the Panthers for first place in the division, a Toronto-Boston matchup with the Bruins holding home-ice advantage would result.

Not only did the Bruins sweep the season series from the Maple Leafs, they have pinned three painful playoff defeats on Toronto since 2013.

Each of those Boston triumphs came in seven games, and the 2013 triumph was one of the most painful in Toronto history. The Maple Leafs had a 4-1 third period lead in the seventh game, but Bruins tied the game by scoring two goals with the goalie pulled and Toronto lost in overtime.

The Bruins may not be as physical as the Panthers, but they have proven to be tougher and more confident than the Maple Leafs when the money is on the table.

Stars like David Pastrnak, Brad Marchand and Charlie McAvoy have caused huge problems to the Leafs, and they may be even harder to defeat than the Panthers.

Defense and goaltending are key issues for the Maple Leafs

The Maple Leafs may be able to score with any team in the Eastern Conference playoffs, but defense continues to be an issue for this franchise.

If they play the Panthers, they will be at a significant disadvantage. Going into Thursday night's action, the Panthers had given up 196 goals in 79 games while the Leafs had allowed 241 goals in 78 games. The Bruins have allowed 215 goals in 79 games.

The Leafs will be asking their defense to take the body throughout the playoffs and they will need goalie Ilya Samsonov to play his best hockey whether they face Florida or Boston. After a slow start, Samsonov has rebounded with a 23-6-7 record, a 3.00 goals against average and an .895 save percentage.

He has been playing his best hockey of the season in recent weeks, and he will have to step it up in the postseason.