How well (or poor) do you think we will play in the playoffs?

[Ciao]

No expectations. I know Dubas has already said if we lose in the first round again their will be changes, but we will be playing a very good team.

This is how I feel, too.

It's a whole new season. I won't have a take on it until the first game is played. I think that first game will say a lot.

It rather reminds me of when Canada played the Soviet Union in the 1972 Summit Series. I remember hurriedly and anxiously finishing dinner to watch the series opener from the Forum in Montreal. I had expected Canada's pro's to roll all over the Soviets, while my father -- playing devil's advocate -- openly rooted for the Russians just to antagonize the rest of the household. The first few moments of play were great, until the Soviets found their legs and stunned Canada's supporters.

Since then, I find it hard to pre-judge games or series until they are played -- or at least in progress.

BTW, my maternal grandfather was an old prairie wheat farmer and an ardent hockey fan who died suddenly in the summer of 1972. While we were so looking forward to the upcoming series, Grandpa often quietly reminded me that there were a lot of people playing hockey in Russia, and that we would be surprised at how good they are.

The Leafs are going to play some good teams, too.

For my own part, I am hoping for the Leafs success, but no more than that.

 

[HamiltonNHL]

my prediction:

 

[hotpaws]

lots of ?

-can Jack bounce back
-can our two studs produce when the oppositions game plan revolves on limiting their production
-can JT do something other than just vulture around the net

and the main question is who'll be the whipping boy if the team gets knocked out early again

 

[Willchel Marlynder]

Team will go as far as Matthews and Marner carry them. We saw last year a Herculean effort from Nylander wasn't enough to get past a team that under normal circumstances doesn't make the playoffs. JT maybe gives you a good game or two in the series but not much more. If we see this version of Matthews and Marner and playoff/Early season Nylander in the playoffs I'm a lot less worried.

 

[Atomos2]

This team is a mixed bag. All you can guarantee is that there will be waves of emotion as this team's mission statement is apparently to do whatever they can to make as many Leaf fans go mad as possible.

 

[Duffman955]

Depends on Goaltending

We can dominate any team we want, but our goaltending is competing for worst in the league

 

[mapleleafs34]

I predict we outplay our opponent for the third year in a row and this year we get some better puck luck and Matthews doesn't shoot 2%

This. And our powerplay being better than the 13% it was in last years playoffs.

 

[hoglund]

The first round is going to be difficult no matter who they play because all the possible teams are good, so I'm hoping for the best, but not going in with high expectations.

 

[Clyde Brewer]

I'm more confident than ever in our defense and I feel that we finally have playoff depth at that position. Our forwards have shown they are capable, but they've also proven to be inconsistent. They need to win puck battles and they need to be hard to play against. They cannot shy away from contact. The goaltending will be a crapshoot at best, we can only hope.

The way I see it, it comes down to our compete level.

 

[Mess]

If its Tampa in round #1 and its Conn Smythe winning Andrei Vasilevskiy vs Jack Campbell then "nervous and concerned is my situation"..

When legendary coaches like Scotty Bowman claim "Good teams are built from the goalie out ...."

Goaltending is Leafs weakest link heading into the playoffs so we are going to need a superhuman like effort in net, and then even its reason to be nervous.,

Last year Campbell posted 1.81 GAA and .934 sv% which is excellent and Leafs still lost to the lowest ranked team entering the playoffs.

 

[Morbo]

comes down to Matthews Marner and Campbell, ultimately.

 

[HamiltonNHL]

Thank god we play playoff teams in the playoffs because we suck against bottom feeders

 

[HamiltonNHL]

I think we’d be a shoe in for the Stanley Cup if we had Carolina’s goaltending.

 

[Enniskillen]

I want Kallgren or Campbell to have a Cinderella/Binnington style run but that’s heart speaking not the brain. The goaltending will be Leafs undoing in the first round against Vasy or Ullmark.

 

[Suntouchable13]

I want Kallgren or Campbell to have a Cinderella/Binnington style run but that’s heart speaking not the brain. The goaltending will Leafs undoing in the first round against Vasy or Ullmark.

Ullmark? Isn't Swayman the #1 in Boston?

That definitely directly falls on Dubas.

 

[57 Years No Cup]

If the other team plays PLAYOFF style hockey, like BUFF did last night (take away time and space, contest every puck, clog the middle) we have zero chance of winning. Zero.

This team ain't built right. It's built for the regular season. A leopard can't change it's spots.

 

[HamiltonNHL]

This team ain't built right

A killer power play could help.

Of course, those dry up in the post season.

If there are a fair number of low event 1 goal games that isn’t going to be easy for the Leafs.

Playoff hockey is puck luck.

Columbus vs Tampa
Leafs vs Montreal

 

[Menzinger]

Ironically the fact that the team is a lock to play a good team in the first and second round is a good thing for this team which always struggles when they have to play down to lesser opponents relying on wonky reffing in the post season.

This team can meet any opponent skill vs skill and playing an opponent that's also trying to open things up on the ice will let the Leafs stats do their thing.

The only serious question is goaltending

 

[Tak7]

Ironically the fact that the team is a lock to play a good team in the first and second round is a good thing for this team which always struggles when they have to play down to lesser opponents relying on wonky reffing in the post season.

This team can meet any opponent skill vs skill and playing an opponent that's also trying to open things up on the ice will let the Leafs stats do their thing.

The only serious question is goaltending

I've said the same thing for a few months now - give me Tampa in the 1st round. They simply cannot have a 1st round opponent that they feel good about. Need to be on their heels, not relaxed.

 

[Eternal Leaf]

This team will be judged based on how it does in the playoffs. This has been said since the loss to Montreal and I don't think that has changed even with their regular-season success.

The biggest question marks surrounding this team can only be answered in round 1. This includes Marner showing up and the team not buckling under pressure during knockout games.

On a brighter note, what the season has shown is the stars taking another step. The defense is also the strongest it's been and the depth across the team is excellent. These are positives that can be taken from the 82-game season.

A new question mark that has been added is the goaltending. While most of the season has been filled with positives, the goaltending leaves a lot to be desired. Plus, their first-round opponent is going to be much better than Montreal.

 

[Stephen]

To this day, I find the psychology of the core group to be a bit of an enigma to be honest.

They play up to the competition, and down to the competition. They don't seem to harbor any traditional notions of hockey grudges vs teams that have embarrassed them. They win big but can lose equally big. In the biggest moments they've been tentative. We'll see!

 

[cupcrazyman]

No way this team wins in the playoffs with Holl in the lineup.

 

[Maple Leaf]

need golaie

 

[HamiltonNHL]

Holl

He’s an easy scapegoat.

Remember, the DEFAULT blame for a first round exit is proportional to your cap hit.

Holl will have to score 3 on his own net to take more blame than Marner if he can’t score 2 goals.

 

[banks]

Voted that they will dominate. The team is currently better than ever, with a defence that has 8 players capable of playing 20 minutes a game. And the current play of Matthews and Marner couldn't be more encouraging.

But the truth is that we will face a Goliath like opponent in round 1, yet again. And a hard fought loss is totally possible, even if this team plays well.