The Toronto Maple Leafs have not missed the Stanley Cup Playoffs since the 2015-16 season – a year so miserable it culminated with the franchise winning the draft lottery and selecting Auston Matthews with the first-overall pick.
Since then, Toronto has been as reliable as any team in the NHL at taking care of business in the regular season.
That has not been the case this season. Watching this year’s version of the Maple Leafs has been like watching a train wreck in slow motion. How blame is apportioned for this year’s grim season is going to be subject to debate for months to come.
Some will look at the deterioration in top-end talent, be it the loss of Mitch Marner to the Vegas Golden Knights or the scoring slowdown…