Honesty: we can’t make any conclusions about this team based on the regular season

[Brown Dog]

I get this sentiment but I don't agree. If we're a true contender, we should be dominating the North--and we are.

There may be another test at some point, but first we have to pass the test of this division. And as we know, a lot can happen over the course of a 7-game series. So not a good idea to look beyond this division just yet.

 

[Not My Tempo]

I mean I think you can. Before the start of the season we expected them to be first in the division which is what they are. Does it mean they’re the best team in the league? Probably not, but they are at the minimum playing to the expectations we had, which were based around them being a top 5 team since Keefe took over.

 

[moon111]

I think the entire team with the exception of Nylander and Rielly have taken steps to graduate from pond-hockey/regular season player to a playoff player.
I trust all the other players to be putting their heart into doing what's right for the team. They might make mistakes, but they're going to try their best in that regard.

 

[ruaware41]

I have a feeling if we were 9-8-2 right now we wouldn't be hearing that the regular season doesn't mean anything.

Well context matters no? If we can’t even beat crappy Canadian teams that would be a cause for concern. I don’t see what you’re trying to get at besides insinuate anyone that doesn’t fall for the koolaid every f***ing year is a hater

 

[ottomaddox]

Many years ago not many Leaf fans had respect for Irbe and The Canes. They got their asses handed to them vs. DET, but they eliminated a very strong/heavy Leafs team.

If Toronto finds an easy path to the finals then I like their chances even more.

 

[57 Years No Cup]

The worst case scenario is winning a first round playoffs series against any team
Anything less , would be a unmitigated disaster !
2nd round win would be a success
The cup would be unreal
But this team and organization and everyone involved and it’s young stars have to win a round

Given the apparent weakness of the Canadian Division, nothing less than a final 4 appearance will be seen as success to me.

 

[Dekes For Days]

So you ignore all legitimate context and quality of competition impacts for years to consistently bash the team and everything associated with it, but now, when we're completely dominating, you've arbitrarily decided our opposition just sucks and nothing we do counts, based on absolutely nothing.

 

[willmma]

Last year we played Canadian teams 14 times

1	10/02/2019		Ottawa Senators	5	3	W
2	10/05/2019		Montreal Canadiens	5	6	L	SO
3	10/26/2019	@	Montreal Canadiens	2	5	L
4	12/10/2019	@	Vancouver Canucks	4	1	W
5	12/12/2019	@	Calgary Flames	2	4	L
6	12/14/2019	@	Edmonton Oilers	4	1	W
7	01/02/2020	@	Winnipeg Jets	6	3	W
8	01/06/2020		Edmonton Oilers	4	6	L
9	01/08/2020		Winnipeg Jets	3	4	L	SO
10	01/16/2020		Calgary Flames	1	2	L	SO
11	02/01/2020		Ottawa Senators	2	1	W	OT
12	02/08/2020	@	Montreal Canadiens	1	2	L	OT
13	02/15/2020	@	Ottawa Senators	4	2	W
14	02/29/2020		Vancouver Canucks	4	2	W

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

GP	W	L	OT/SO		PTS	PTS%
14	7	3	4		18	0.643

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

So far this year we have played them 19 times

GP	W	L	OT/SO		PTS	PTS%
19	14	3	2		30	0.789

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Are we allowed to be honest and say we are playing much better this year?
Is that a sign of improvement that we can be happy about?

 

[RogerR]

Each passing day the legend of how "Bad" the North is grows. I grew up with the Leafs in the Norris division LOL. North has among the best talent in the entire NHL.
A Team from this division can certainly win a cup

 

[Machinae]

Even when the Leafs win it isn't ever good enough, sheesh.. Was the Leafs regular season series' against teams like Boston and Tampa even bad? If the division is bad, that means good teams should beat them.. which means.. the Leafs are a good team?

 

[Machinae]

The elite super team Boston Bruins needed 7 games to put away the lowly Leafs.. twice.. Does that get factored into the narrative that the Leafs can't get passed the first round? Oh, no excuses, Leafs need to be better. Got it. Well, no excuses, the Leafs crush this division and are top of the league. A team that can take the Bruins to the limit multiple times.

 

[Gary Nylund]

Each passing day the legend of how "Bad" the North is grows. I grew up with the Leafs in the Norris division LOL. North has among the best talent in the entire NHL.
A Team from this division can certainly win a cup

A team from this division can win the cup only because we're in this division.

I still say the division is pretty bad. They're still all NHL teams though, it's not like we're playing AHL teams or anything. And let's not forget that we're in this division too so ... we don't have to play the Toronto Maple Leafs which means that our opposition on average is substantially weaker then teams in our division when we're included.

I think the OP doesn't line up well with the thread title. On one hand we won't know how we match up with teams we won't play this season until we play them so there is that but then, the same can be said for every team in the NHL. On the other hand, every game we play tells us something, it's not like we don't know anything about this team until we start playing in the semi-finals (assuming we make it that far).

If we can keep going the way we are and dominate the division from start to finish, that tells us something. If we falter, see our play drop off substantially and limp into 1st place or even not win the division, that tells us something. Again, every game tells us something and like I said before, what our play so far this season tells me is that this is a damn good team. I am quite sure that when teams like Boston, TB or whoever else is thinking about us, they're not thinking ah those Leafs, they always fold in the playoffs. They're thinking it looks like these guys have taken a big step forward this season, they're bringing it pretty much every night and Matthews and Marner have cranked up a notch and are among the most dangerous players in the league. I sure hope someone in the North flukes out a victory over them in the playoffs because if these guys make it to the final 4 on a roll, they're going to be scary.

 

[JT AM da real deal]

My hope is luck hits us huge this year ... we win North which we should as we are BEST team in north ... then let's hope we avoid Bruins ... play Avs in semis then Tampa beats Bruins and it is Tampa v Leafs in final ... a little harder if we draw Tampa in semis but there is a chance there ... da Bruins is only team I hope we can avoid in semis as their style is not a good matchup for us

 

[Nineteen67]

The north division is a joke.

 

[Jimmy Firecracker]

We know and knew they can beat the likes of Montreal, Ottawa, and Vancouver. We know they can turn up the heat against these teams. We often seem to struggle in the crunch time against teams that play a more playoff style of hockey , something a large part of us have agreed upon here for a while.

This regular season doesn’t really answer questions about the improvements the team has made to better handle those teams. No Boston, no St. Louis, no Vegas, no Columbus. Can they play a tight game against teams that clog the neutral zone, forecheck heavy, and limit scoring, at least better than they used to? I don’t think we can say one way or another until the playoffs.

Every party needs a pooper, that’s why they invited you.

 

[Subway Schenn]

A lot of pressure to win a round this year. Luckily we have the team to do it, even if we're up against McDavid!

 

[colchar]

We know and knew they can beat the likes of Montreal, Ottawa, and Vancouver.

They are only 3-2 vs. Ottawa, which should be cause for concern.

 

[IPS]

I have a feeling if we were 9-8-2 right now we wouldn't be hearing that the regular season doesn't mean anything.

We'd sure be hearing a lot about Lou's 105 point season too.

 

[nsleaf]

It appears "honesty" was missed in the thread title.
If you want to be compared to the best then you have to compete against the best.

 

[LeafGrief]

Yes and no. On the one hand, this team will be judged based on playoff success. Win a few rounds or there there might be some rolling heads. But on the other hand, if we're cruising to a top seed it does tell us that this team has some really good pieces and is in a strong place. If this season ends in tears again it will be clear that we'll need to make a few changes, but the success that we're seeing right now validates that this team is in a very good place right now. We're a top team in the league and rich with assets on the roster and in the pipeline. At this point it's about getting the recipe just right, rather than having enough talent.

 

[Sypher04]

They are only 3-2 vs. Ottawa, which should be cause for concern.

3-1-1 technically and Ottawa plays harder than people give them credit for. They lose because they aren't very good, but they make you work for it. In either case, very good teams do lose to bad teams on occassion, that's hockey

 

[Sypher04]

It appears "honesty" was missed in the thread title.
If you want to be compared to the best then you have to compete against the best.

This is true for all the top teams though that are benefiting from not playing each other, so no really relevant.

 

[willmma]

NHL Power Rankings

Leafs #1 in the league (NBC Sports)
NHL Power Rankings: Maple Leafs climb to top spot

leafs #1 in the league (The Score)
NHL Power Rankings: Every team's biggest surprise

Leafs #4 in the league (Money Puck)
NHL Power Rankings -MoneyPuck NHL Power Rankings

Leafs #1 in the league (The Hockey Guy)


Leafs #1 in the league (Odds Shark)
NHL Hockey - Power Rankings

Leafs #1 in the league (TSN)
Leafs rebound from loss to Sens to take top spot in Power Rankings


But let's not rush to conclude we have a good team here.

 

[Teeder Keon]

NHL Power Rankings

Leafs #1 in the league (NBC Sports)
NHL Power Rankings: Maple Leafs climb to top spot

leafs #1 in the league (The Score)
NHL Power Rankings: Every team's biggest surprise

Leafs #4 in the league (Money Puck)
NHL Power Rankings -MoneyPuck NHL Power Rankings

Leafs #1 in the league (The Hockey Guy)


Leafs #1 in the league (Odds Shark)
NHL Hockey - Power Rankings

Leafs #1 in the league (TSN)
Leafs rebound from loss to Sens to take top spot in Power Rankings


But let's not rush to conclude we have a good team here.

our fan base unfortunately have been jaded and wounded for so many years It will take a cup to change and erase the 67 thing
When we finally win the big Kahuna , we can collectively exhale and feel what the Redsox organization and fans feel ahhhhhhhhh
Soon so soon !!

 

[Mess]

Last year we played Canadian teams 14 times

GP	W	L	OT/SO		PTS	PTS%
14	7	3	4		18	0.643

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

So far this year we have played them 19 times

GP	W	L	OT/SO		PTS	PTS%
19	14	3	2		30	0.789

[TBODY] [/TBODY]

Are we allowed to be honest and say we are playing much better this year?
Is that a sign of improvement that we can be happy about?

Last year when we played the full NHL and you remove the CDN teams 14 games and 18 points from the equation it leaves 63 points in 56 games or 0.5625 PTS% [= 92 point pace on full season].

If you remove the stronger USA teams and only play the weaker CDN teams then yes we're beating up on them more than last year. In fact its so good this year @ .798 PTS% = 128 point pace on a full season = 4th best season All-time in NHL history. [Toronto's All-time best is 105 points]

So unless one believes this is a team that should be ranked among the best all-time based on this season performance and results, then context and quality of competition need to be factored into the analysis.

Case in point : Ottawa (31st in GA), Vancouver (30th) and Edmonton (27th) so 3 of the bottom 5 teams in worst goals against in the entire NHL all reside in the CDN Div including the bottom 2 worst overall. That's why almost all the top 10 NHL goal scorers reside in the CDN Div due to this factor.

Honestly, our Leafs are by far the best team in the weakest Div in the NHL, and performing well against a lower QofC that should see them coast into the playoffs.