Leafs In A Good Spot (Again)

TORONTO (May 7) — Numbers occasionally lie, as they did for the Toronto Maple Leafs a year ago this month. But, here’s a fact: In Stanley Cup playoff history, the team that leads 2–1 after Game 3 in a best–of–seven… Read More

Now Leafs Need A Counterpunch

TORONTO (May 4) — Chalk up one for the champ, but don’t give up on the challenger. Game 2 of the Maple Leafs–Tampa Bay Stanley Cup series may have seemed like the polar opposite of Game 1, but the difference… Read More

Raise The Bar, Leafs Nation

TORONTO (May 3) — It was, in a word, perfection. Or, as near as a hockey team can reasonably approach that elusive target. Casting full and boundless credit on Brendan Shanahan, Kyle Dubas, Sheldon Keefe and all the men wearing… Read More

In The End, It’s Up To Smilin’ Jack

TORONTO (Apr. 30) — How fascinating and coincidental it was that the best regular season in the history of the Toronto Maple Leafs coincided with the worst–ever season for the Montreal Canadiens? Rivals from the very beginning of the… Read More

Mostly Quiet Jubilation For Leafs

TORONTO (Apr. 20) — The numbers are more impressive than ever, but this is largely a “been there, done that” season for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Which is evident in nearly all the right places amid mainstream media. Yes, Damien… Read More

Can Leafs Beat Tampa Bay or Boston?

TORONTO (Apr. 16) — Given their glistening record against fellow Stanley Cup contenders, the Toronto Maple Leafs should be quite a match for either the Tampa Bay Lightning or Boston Bruins in the opening round of the Stanley Cup playoffs.… Read More

The Leafs Beat Goes On… And On

“I will be at the Capitals/Leafs game Thursday hoping to welcome Mr. Matthews into our 60–goal club.” — Former NHLer Dennis Maruk, who scored 60 for Washington in 1981–82. TORONTO (Apr. 10) — Without question, the 2021–22 National Hockey League… Read More

Every Goal Ladens The Anvil

What Matthews has yet to do — what [Mike] Bossy accomplished — is transferring his regular season success to the playoffs. — Steve Simmons, Toronto Sun, Apr. 5, 2022. TORONTO (Apr. 7) — Yes, the numbers are astounding. There is… Read More

For Leafs, Next “Test” Begins in May

TORONTO (Apr. 4) — I have read that the “biggest test” of the season for the Toronto Maple Leafs arises in the next couple of nights with road games against Atlantic Division rivals Tampa Bay and Florida. This isn’t accurate.… Read More

Maple Leafs 50–goal Timeline

TORONTO (Apr. 2) — The bulletin, late Thursday night, from ESPN in the United States: Auston Matthews joins exclusive Toronto Maple Leafs club with NHL-leading 50th goal Auston Matthews scored his NHL-leading 50th goal of the season and the Toronto… Read More

Sheldon Keefe’s Finest Hour

TORONTO (Mar. 31) — Interesting, isn’t it, that the best performances by the Toronto Maple Leafs under their past two coaches came against the club’s long–time nemesis, the Boston Bruins? For Mike Babcock, it was Game 5 of the 2019… Read More

The Leaf “Hater’s” Handbook

TORONTO (Mar. 29) — From my perspective (maybe you share it, maybe you don’t), here’s what the Toronto Maple Leafs have accomplished in the past three games: Edged a lottery team (New Jersey) playing on back–to–back nights; lost to the… Read More

Can M & M Take the Necessary Step?

TORONTO (Mar. 26) — There’s a chance that Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner could combine, this season, for the most points by any pair of forwards in the history of the Toronto Maple Leafs. The record of 210 belongs to… Read More

Galley Should Be With Cuthbert

TORONTO (Mar. 24) — Between 1986 and 2006, Hockey Night In Canada presented nationwide viewers the best play caller and color analyst in the business. Bob Cole and Harry Neale could not be matched north of the border. Given that… Read More

There’s Still Hope For The Leafs

TORONTO (Mar. 22) — I am pondering again today the “window of opportunity” for the Toronto Maple Leafs to capture their first National Hockey League title since 1967. It’s a valid, if highly subjective, argument in these parts and it… Read More

Did Kyle Make A Lethal Mistake?

TORONTO (Mar. 21) — A bromide in professional sport decries that “the best trade is often the one not made.” Is it possible that Kyle Dubas, general manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs, could regret a best trade he “should… Read More

Giordano Has The Wrong Equipment

TORONTO (Mar. 20) — The Maple Leafs made a prudent acquisition from Seattle today in veteran defenseman Mark Giordano. Though on the back nine of his career, he’ll provide the club some of what it lost with Jake Muzzin on… Read More

It Comes Down to the Sunshine State

TORONTO (Mar. 19) — As a kid growing up in the early 1970’s, Florida was a far away place my parents visited each year in February. It was home to Don Shula, Larry Csonka, Nick Buoniconti and the best football… Read More