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Toronto Maple Leafs won’t be an easy first-round out for the Panthers or Bruins

Originally posted on Daily Faceoff | By Hunter Crowther | Last updated 4/2/24

All bets are off once the puck drops in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, but after Monday night’s 6-4 win for the Toronto Maple Leafs over the Florida Panthers, there’s a case to be made that the Leafs won’t be an easy out for whomever they play in the first round of the playoffs.

With eight games to go, the Maple Leafs are third in the Atlantic Division with 95 points, four behind the second-place Panthers with 99 points and the first-place Boston Bruins, who have 101 points with seven games to go. If the playoffs started today, Toronto would face Florida in round one in the playoffs. Would they have a chance?

On Tuesday’s episode of Daily Faceoff LIVE, Frank Seravalli and Tyler Yaremchuk discuss the Maple Leafs’ win on Monday and how they stack up against both the Bruins and the Panthers.

Tyler Yaremchuk: One of the really entertaining games on Monday night was between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers. A 6-4 final, and through 40 minutes, Maple Leafs’ fans were riding high as the team was up 5-1. They were really taking it to a team they could be playing in the first round of the playoffs.

Frank, when you look at the fact that these two teams could face one another, that the Leafs looked dominant and they were missing a ton of really good players. Since they were able to play that well, I think it sends a message that they won’t just roll over for either Florida or the Boston Bruins.

Frank Seravalli: I would agree, and if you look at the Maple Leafs since the Ridley Greig empty-net goal, they’re 17-6-1 since then. The Leafs have played really well, better than anyone would expect. There’s still some inconsistencies, but what I like about Toronto heading into the playoffs, the pressure’s off.

In all the years when they’re expected to make a run, they slayed that first-round dragon last year and now head into a playoffs where Florida and Boston would be considered the favorites. Maybe that’s an opening for the Maple Leafs to pull through?