NHL Eastern Conference First Round (A2) Boston Bruins vs. (A3) Toronto Maple Leafs Written
Boston, Massachusetts- Death, taxes, and the Toronto Maple Leafs losing to the Boston Bruins in the first round. Three of the previous four times the Maple Leafs have made the playoffs, they entered as a lower seed facing off against a much more experienced Bruins team. However this time, Toronto had talent on their side. Over this last offseason, they signed superstar John Tavares to a 7-year $77 million contract to add to an already extremely promising core that included Mitchell Marner and Auston Matthews. Matthews, who was the first overall pick in 2016, had a career year this season. In just 68 games played, he recorded a career-high 73 points. Marner shined even brighter, recording a team-high 94 points. Despite these numbers, no progress has been made since last season, which finished exactly the same way for the Maple Leafs. Things were brighter than usual for them, as they were able to take a 3-2 series lead with game 6 being played at Scotiabank Arena. Leafs killer Jake DeBrusk struck for his first goal of the playoffs, and the Maple Leafs fell at home, 4-2. This led to a game 7 in Boston, in which the Maple Leafs meekly faded away into the offseason. They were trounced, 5-1. Despite this anticlimactic ending, the future is bright for the Leafs. Marner is only 22, and Matthews is 21. If they can come into their own with an established star in John Tavares, they will be a force to be reckoned with for years to come.