Former Leafs GM makes bold prediction about this year's team
After the Leafs got off to a rough start this season, there were a lot of question marks over not only whether or not the team would finally make it past the first round this year, but also whether they'd qualify for the playoffs at all. The Leafs were 4-4-2 after 10 games to start the year and there was some talk over whether they'd look to replace head coach Sheldon Keefe and GM Kyle Dubas. Well, a few weeks can drastically alter the overall outlook of the team and now the Leafs find themselves winners of 5-straight and in 3rd place in the league with a 15-5-5 record through 25 games.
A former Leafs GM has taken notice of the team's efforts this year and has commended them for being a "resilient group" on Friday, ahead of a Saturday meeting with the Tampa Bay Lightning. Dave Nonis joined Nick Kypreos and Justin Bourne on Sportsnet's Real Kyper and Bourne on Friday, stating that he believes this to be the year that the Leafs finally break through the glass ceiling and makes it out of the first round of the playoffs.
The Leafs currently have 4 players at or above the point-per-game mark and, wouldn't you know it, it's the "Core 4" of Marner, Matthews, Tavares and Nylander. When you have 4 guys who are that good who are all playing to their maximum potential, it's really hard to slow a team like that down. Furthermore, the Buds' defense has been excellent this season, despite numerous injuries to key blueliners and the goaltending has been nothing short of phenomenal.
At this point, we could be nearing the point of it not being a matter of whether or not the Leafs can win in the playoffs, but rather "how far can they go this year?".
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 3 | 237 ANSWERS Former Leafs GM makes bold prediction about this year's team How far will the Leafs go in the 2022-23 playoffs? | ||
| Out in round 1 | 34 | 14.3 % |
| 2nd round | 27 | 11.4 % |
| Conference Finals | 78 | 32.9 % |
| Stanley Cup Finals | 98 | 41.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
