“All the distinction comes when the team is doing well. Like, you get individual awards and more in the regular season, and it’s great. But when it comes time for the playoffs, those things don’t mean much,” said defender Jake Muzin. with a conscious laugh. . “It’s a new season, really, and we have to start breaking records [the] playoff I guess, so to speak. So you need day by day, get ready for Game 1 and go from there “. Following the close of their regular season against the Boston Bruins on Friday, the Maple Leafs will play Game 1 of the first round of the Eastern Conference at home having finished second in the Atlantic Division. They will face two-time defending Stanley Cup champions Tampa Bay Lightning or the Bruins, who reached the 2019 Stanley Cup final. Either way, the playoff experience and success will not be on their side. Muzzin and striker Kyle Clifford are the only Maple Leafs members to have won the Stanley Cup, with the Los Angeles Kings (Muzzin in 2014, Clifford in 2012 and 2014). Therefore, Muzzin understands the grind, energy and sweat it takes to endure the post-season. The majority of his teammates can not make this claim. From 2016-17, the Maple Leafs, with strikers Matthews, Mitchell Marner, William Nylander and defender Morgan Rielly at the helm, advance to the Stanley Cup Playoffs each season and fail to win a series. Last season, Toronto led 3-1 in the first round of the best-of-7 against rival Montreal Canadiens, which reached the Cup final. Each time, the season ended with a gloomy locker room with players wondering what happened. The Toronto playoffs last much longer than that. The Maple Leafs have not won a playoff series in 18 years since beating the Ottawa Senators in seven games in the 2004 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals. For a perspective on this drought, consider the following: At the time, the red line in the center of the ice was still used to monitor the two-line offside passes. Or’s: Ed Belfour was the Maple Leafs’ main goalkeeper in the series against the Senators. He retired in 2008 and entered the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2011. However, these Maple Leafs have a lot to be optimistic about. Toronto set a season record for most points (113) and wins (53) and scored 300 goals for the first time in 32 years. has 307 to 81 games. Matthews, a center-back, scored the most goals from a Toronto player in a single season and became the first US-born player in NHL history to score 60 in a single season. Marner, right winger, set a Maple Leafs record for assists from a wing with (he has 62 with one game left). Another and finished time for the playoffs, and it will not be in vain, at least in the short term. At least some of the key players have returned to have a career season after the terrifying exclusion from the Canadians. “I think what we are all striving for is to grow and become better,” Matthews said. “We can use some extra motivation from previous defeats and the like. This is the goal every year, whether as an individual or as a team, is to become better and be the best version of yourself that you can be every day. somehow goes from there. “I think we all recognize that, but the success of the team comes first. What we are trying to build and evolve with the playoff time here until spring, I think that is the goal we are all trying to work on.” Coach Sheldon Keefe, who replaced Mike Babcock on November 20, 2019, has never coached Toronto for a full-time playoff game at the Scotiabank Arena due to COVID-19 regulations that limited capacity. Although he looks forward to seeing fans on the podium for Game 1 next week, he understands that his players’ achievements in the regular season have little to no significance once the post-season starts. “The achievements themselves, the milestones, when the playoffs start, everyone goes back to zero,” Keefe said. “Therefore, beyond that, I do not think they necessarily have much emphasis or importance. “The important thing I would say, however, is that we want our players to feel good and confident and all that. To that end, our players, almost like men, have had kids who have had years of careers here, aggressively and defensively, whatever it is From this end, and for this part, we feel good and our kids have many reasons to be positive in the playoffs. “ So did Keefe, who shone with pride during Wednesday’s photo shoot. “It is special to be able to coach the Leafs, regardless of what the team behind you has achieved,” he said. “It’s something special, but this team, in particular, gave me many reasons to be proud of the work they did. To get to this point, in my opinion, in the most competitive NHL category and go to the first round of the playoffs with an ice home advantage, is proof of the work the club has done. “Well, it’s nice to sit there. But, you know, we’d love to have another photo of the team when all this is said and done with some trophies.” Winning a postseason series for the first time in almost two decades would be a good start.
