Bruce Boudreau makes surprising comments regarding the Maple Leafs' offseason

"I'm not just saying this because I'm from Toronto, but I really do think it's the Leafs. I really like what they did with their defense," said Boudreau. "The three acquisitions they made to bolster their defense, especially when you get Tanev -- I had Ekman-Larsson and when he's at his best, he's still a really good defenseman -- these guys are really good players. Toronto already has the offense, and if they can get the defense to go with it, I really believe they can make it past the first round and go a little bit further."

"As for Berube, I don't think the pressure is going to bother him. When he played, he fought every tough guy in the history of the game�that's pressure... He's a really good defensive coach, and that's why they added the defensemen that they did and I think if the Leafs get a little bit better defensively to add to that offense and I think he's going to be way more accountable that maybe Sheldon was... When he was in St. Louis and whether when I was in Minnesota or Anaheim or Vancouver, he was always a tough guy to go against because the team kept playing the same way and that's going to make the Leafs a little bit tougher and a bit more sand paper and that's how Calgary was a couple years ago with Brad Treliving so I don't see anything changing on offense, but I do see them being tougher to play against next year."