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TAMPA, FLORIDA – APRIL 29: The Toronto Maple Leafs have a good time profitable Recreation Six of the First Spherical of … [+]
It’s been 19 years for the reason that Toronto Maple Leafs have been in a position to advance previous the primary spherical.
19 grueling years for an Authentic Six workforce with 13 championship seasons, that some think about the epicenter of hockey typically.
Over this stretch, Toronto has missed the playoffs 10 instances and misplaced within the first spherical 7 instances, and earlier than their Recreation Six win over the Tampa Bay Lightning, that they had misplaced 11 consecutive clinching video games.
However, regardless of going into additional time on the highway after main the collection 3 video games to 1, John Tavares was in a position to let the Toronto devoted breathe an overdue sigh of reduction when his wrister beat Andrei Vasilevskiy within the internet.
So, what was completely different about this workforce? What did this 111-point squad try this the 18 groups didn’t do earlier than?
By way of their top-of-the-line expertise, virtually nothing. In actual fact, going from final season to this one, the highest six gamers in factors are precisely the identical.
However the offense was by no means the workforce’s subject, as how might or not it’s when you could have Auston Matthews coming into the postseason after a 60-goal yr, Mitch Marner ending simply shy of 100 factors, and William Nylander, John Tavar
TAMPA, FLORIDA – APRIL 29: Auston Matthews #34 of the Toronto Maple Leafs seems to cross within the … [+]
es, Morgan Rielly and Michael Bunting all totaling north of 60-points.
When the calendar switched nonetheless, it was one other yr that noticed the offense be held in examine when it mattered most, as towards this similar Lightning workforce, Toronto solely scored 4 targets within the ultimate 2 video games after leaping to a 3-2 collection lead, which fails to do the trick when you find yourself giving up a median of three.8 targets per recreation excluding Tampa being shut out in Recreation One.
So, it appeared as if Toronto made an effort to lastly solidify their defensive unit, however they didn’t must sacrifice a lot.
The largest change got here in internet, because the Maple Leafs signed 25-year-old Ilya Samsonov to a one-year, $1.8 million contract.
After four-years with Washington, Samsonov had a career-year, with a .919 save proportion and a couple of.33 targets towards common in 42 video games.
TAMPA, FL – APRIL 29: Brayden Level #21 of the Tampa Bay Lightning battles for the puck towards Luke … [+]
However, Toronto knew that bringing in a cheap goaltending possibility wouldn’t change this workforce’s id, particularly whereas already paying Matthews, Tavares, and Marner north of $10 million in adjusted cap hits.
So, once more with primarily the identical workforce as that they had the yr earlier than, they took a way more selfless method defensively, fully altering their leaderboards in blocked pictures.
In 2022, T.J. Brodie and Justin Holl had been the one 2 gamers to succeed in north of 100. This season, Mark Giordano led the way in which with 147, and the workforce added 242 extra blocks in whole.
So, regardless of the NHL seeming to pattern extra in direction of the smaller talent gamers dominating in open ice, the postseason appears to nonetheless be led by the older morals of physicality and workforce protection, which Toronto seemingly made an effort to adapt to this yr.
And what higher solution to check it than towards the workforce with probably the most playoff depth of anybody in hockey, who was in a position to comeback and defeat Toronto only a yr in the past?
Whereas this will not have been the Lighting at full power, Toronto couldn’t have been thrilled after seeing their first-round foe. However the enjoying kinds had been noticeably completely different on this collection than final, as regardless of greater targets per recreation on this collection, the workforce hits, blocks, and penalty minutes had been extra within the first Six Video games than in 2021-2022.
However, can this method be sufficient for a deeper run than simply the ethical victory of lastly advancing previous the primary spherical? The Maple Leafs stands out as the solely franchise that didn’t look previous their opponent to plan for the Jap Semifinals, however now it appears much more doable than anybody might think about.
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