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3 Keys to the Maple Leafs Beating the Bruins in the First Round
After a strong start and disappointing finish in their 5-2 loss to the Florida Panthers in the second last game of the regular season, the Toronto Maple Leafs finally know their opponent in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. And it’s not one that has been kind to them in the past.
For the third time since 2017-18, the Maple Leafs will face the Boston Bruins in the first round. In any other season, it would be a situation where you would get ready for your opponent and dig deep to play against a tenacious and tough team. However, the Bruins have had the Maple Leafs’ number in every single meeting in the postseason.
From the 2013 4-1 collapse to the back-to-back losses in 2017-18 and 2018-19, the Maple Leafs need to figure out how they’re going to play against the Bruins. Are they going to put forth their best effort and show some fight like they have this season? Or will they get into their bad habits like they have against them and other top contenders this season. Here are 3 keys for the Maple Leafs against the Bruins.
Flip the Script: Take 4
After they’ve faced disappointment at the hands of their divisional rivals, it’s safe to say that Maple Leafs should go in motivated and wanting to flip the script. Even their play in the regular season should be a big reason why they should be ready after they were swept losing all four games.
The Maple Leafs kept things close in their first two meetings– a 3-2 and 4-3 loss coming in overtime– but the Maple Leafs were their own worst enemy in their last two games, making costly mistakes and ended up losing a combined score of 8-2. They went 1-for-8 on the power play in those two games and only had one power play goal in the season series. According to Natural Stat Trick their scoring chances for at five-on-five were above 50% in two of the four games and they only had one good game where their expected goals was at 55.80%.
The numbers show that it was somewhat close, but the eye test shows that the Maple Leafs have a lot to work on, ahead of their series. The Maple Leafs know how they play and they even said that they need to be prepared for what’s in store.
“It will be a real challenge,” captain John Tavares said according to TSN. “It’s a test and we have to be prepared.”
