And so they meet again. The Bruins and Toronto Maple Leafs don’t hold their spring clash quite as a frequently as the B’s and Montreal Canadiens once did, but the Blue-and-White have replaced the Bleu, Blanc et Rouge as the B’s chief rival.
This will be the fourth time in 11 years the two Original Six teams will meet in the first round of the playoffs. And so far, to the delight of B’s fans, their team has played the role of the pre-1988 Habs to the Leafs, who’ve been playing the Charlie Brown Bruins of yesteryear.
But as much as the B’s fandom believes they own the Leafs, it’s never been easy. Three series, three Game 7 wins for the Bruins. And if you’re a Leafs’ fan, you can say the hockey gods have been very kind to the B’s. In the 2013 colossal collapse, the refs swallowed their whistles to allow the B’s to manhandle Toronto in their three-goal comeback. In 2018 and 2019, valuable centerman Nazem Kadri got himself suspended. Had he kept his cool, the trajectory of recent Leaf history might have been very different.
Nobody knows what strange things will occur over the next two weeks. But if it’s anything like the three previous series, this one should be a lot of fun. This is how the lines and pairs looked in Friday’s practices for both teams:
Forwards
Bruins
Danton Heinen-Pavel Zacha-David Pastrnak
Brad Marchand-Charlie Coyle-Jake DeBrusk
Jakub Lauko-Morgan Geekie-Trent Frederic
John Beecher-Jesper Boqvist-Pat Maroon
Extra: James van Riemsdyk
Maple Leafs
Tyler Bertuzzi-Auston Matthews-Max Domi
Matthew Knies-John Tavares-Mitch Marner
Nick Robertson-Pontus Holmberg-Calle Jarnkrok
Connor Dewar-David Kampf-Ryan Reaves
Extras: William Nylander, Nick Robertson, Noah Gregor, Bobby McMann
Skinny: Pastrnak has led the way for the Bruins all season with 110 points, 43 more than Marchand, the second leading scorer. That’s a big drop off. But the B’s have gotten career highs from Coyle and Zacha, who have outscored what the two generational players they replaced – Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci – provided last season. They will need more depth scoring from DeBrusk and Frederic. Maroon’s physical presence around the net could be an X-factor for the Bruins.
Meanwhile, Matthews has established himself as the top goal scorer in the NHL, but he’s not a one-man show. The other members of the “Core Four” — Nylander (40-58-98), Marner (26-59-85) and John Tavares (29-36-65) – have produced as well. A fly in the ointment is Nylander (undisclosed), who did not practice on Friday. If he’s deemed ready, he could go in at Robertson’s spot.
New additions Bertuzzi and Domi have added some edge and, after slow starts, have hit their stride. Reaves brings an element that Leafs haven’t had in recent meetings. The Leafs are second in goal scoring (3.63). The Leafs are ranked fourth in faceoffs (53.4%) while the B’s are 21st (49.5%).
Edge: Maple Leafs
Defense
Bruins
Hampus Lindholm-Charlie McAvoy
Matt Grzelcyk-Brandon Carlo
Kevin Shattenkirk-Andrew Peeke
Extras: Parker Wotherspoon, Mason Lohrei
Maple Leafs
Morgan Rielly-Ilya Lyubushkin
Simon Benoit-Jake McCabe
Joel Edmundson-Timothy Liljegren
Extras: Mark Giordano, Connor Timmins, T.J. Brodie, Cade Webber
Skinny: It’s been a season-long search for the right six-pack of D for the Bruins, and that could continue in the playoffs. But they’ve gotten more stout as the year has gone on. They’ve loaded up with their best two blueliners on the top pair and the acquisition of Peeke has helped in lead-protection mode, adding physicality and snarl to a back end that needed it. Thanks to his power play skills and veteran savvy, Shattenkirk has grabbed a spot in the top six. If they need some more ruggedness, Wotherspoon would be an easy insert. The B’s are ranked sixth in goals against (2.70).
The Leafs have more bite on the back end than they’ve had in years past with McCabe and trade deadline acquisition Edmundson, if he can stay healthy. Rielly is a terrific offensive player but can be suspect in his own end. The Leafs are ranked 21st in goals against (3.18).
Edge: Bruins
Goaltending
Bruins
Linus Ullmark
Jeremy Swayman
Maple Leafs
Ilya Samsonov
Joseph Woll
Martin Jones
Skinny: One of the most intriguing story lines is how the B’s will utilize their two goalies, who have rotated all season long. Ullmark has been the better goalie down the stretch, but Swayman has owned the Leafs this year (3-0, 1.30 GAA and .959 save percentage). It’s a good bet both will see significant action, but the Game 1 starter is a toss-up. It also sounds like Jim Montgomery will try to keep the outside world guessing as much as possible.
For the Leafs, all three goalies have seen significant time with Ilya Samsonov, the expected Game 1 starter, playing the most games and having the worst stats (.890, 3.13) but best record (23-7-8). Woll played in three of the four games and allowed a dozen goals. Shelldon Keefe didn’t reveal his Game 1 starter, either.
Edge: Bruins
Special teams
Skinny: The power play has been a trouble spot for the B’s off and on all season, so much you might think they’re at the bottom of the league. Not so. They’re ranked 13th with a 22.2% success rate and, who knows, maybe they’ve hit on something with the new personnel on the PP. The Leafs, with their firepower, are better on the man advantage than the B’s, but not by that much (7th, 24%).
The bigger disparity is on the penalty kill. The B’s have not been as good as in past years, but they’re in the top 10 (7th, 82.5%). The Leaf, on the other hand, are 23rd (76.9%).
Edge: Bruins
Coaches
Bruins
Jim Montgomery
Maple Leafs
Sheldon Keefe
Skinny: Both coaches have one playoff series win under their belts, Montgomery with Dallas while Keefe finally got the Leafs through to the second round last year. But the job Montgomery did this year with a team that was chock full of one-year and expiring contracts was remarkable – and good enough to earn home ice advantage in this series.
Edge: Bruins
Intangibles
The B’s have beaten the Leafs seven straight times in the regular season. Elvis was in the Army the last time the Leafs beat the B’s in the postseason (1959), though they’ve only met seven times since. The postseason meetings have been frequent lately, though, with the B’s delivering three Game 7 daggers between 2013 and 2019. Maybe all the Leafs need all is one win to change the mojo. No matter how far the Leafs can go, beating the B’s would matter a little more than just a first-round win.
Edge: Leafs.
Pick: Bruins in 7. Nothing comes easy for this team.
