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The Toronto Maple Leafs are headed to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the ninth consecutive season. Since Auston Matthews, John Tavares, and Mitch Marner joined forces, they have been dominant in the regular season. But the playoffs have been a different story, with just one series win in those eight attempts. The Maple Leafs are potentially playing the Florida Panthers in the first round of the playoffs. But the dream is the same as it has been since 1967.
The Maple Leafs are closing in on their first division title since 2002. They are two points up on the Lightning with a game in hand and should be able to close it down the stretch. While that is a great accomplishment, they could get the ultimate punishment in the first round. The Panthers are incredibly injured and have been sitting players to get healthy for the playoffs. That could send them tumbling down the standings into a matchup with Toronto.
The Maple Leafs lost to the Panthers in the first round of 2023, but that alone is not enough to scare them off. Florida traded for Bruins captain Brad Marchand, who has been a thorn in Toronto's side for over a decade. Combining Matthew Tkachuk and Marchand creates a Maple Leafs killer that could cost them in the playoffs.
A true nightmare scenario for the Maple Leafs would be losing to the Ottawa Senators. They are provincial rivals, and Ottawa has not been in the playoffs since 2017. If they lose to Ottawa, it will cause a similar reaction to their 2021 loss to the Montreal Canadiens. Losing another series to a regional rival would be a miserable way to end the season.
The nightmare scenarios are plentiful for a team and fanbase that has lived their nightmares year over year. But what about their dreams?
Maple Leafs need to forget horrid past to live out their dreams
There is no opponent to pinpoint for the Maple Leafs' dream scenario. They have lost in the playoffs to the Panthers, Lightning, and Canadiens, and cannot afford to lose to Ottawa. There is no situation in which any other team plays Toronto unless there is a stunning change in the Wild Card picture.
The Maple Leafs have not won a Stanley Cup since 1967, one of the longest droughts in all of sports. They have not made the Cup Final since then either, and this core has given them plenty of chances. With no teams providing a fresh start to work from, this core just has to bury their demons.
They have made one big change that could help them in the playoffs. Craig Berube led the 2019 St Louis Blues to the Stanley Cup and is now the Maple Leafs' bench boss. Even though there were Leafs teams under Sheldon Keefe with better regular-season records, there haven't been any with a Cup-winning coach since Mike Babcock left in 2020.
For the rest of the regular season, the Maple Leafs should focus on winning the Atlantic Division. Even if that gives them a harder first-round matchup, it would be their first banner in over two decades. It will be difficult for them to make the conference final, regardless of who they play in the first round, with Tampa and Florida in their division.
The Maple Leafs need to make their deep playoff run this year. Mitch Marner and John Tavares are both free agents after this season and could both leave. If this is their last dance, they need to win in the Stanley Cup Playoffs to salvage their core's prime.
