The Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning are set to renew their postseason rivalry with their second straight first round matchup that officially begins tonight.
Last season, it was the Lightning overcoming a 3-2 series deficit thanks to Brayden Point’s overtime winner in Game 6 followed by Nick Paul playing the role of hero in Game 7, sending Toronto home for an early summer yet again. It goes without saying that this year is huge for Toronto, who are facing a summer of radical changes if they fail to win a postseason series yet again.
Thank to their superior regular season record, the Leafs once again clinched home ice advantage for their series against the Lightning. And head coach Jon Cooper had nothing but good things to say about them, acknowledging their defensive improvements.
“The Leafs, to me, keep making positive strides every year. They’re a dynamic offensive team with dynamic players. But they’ve really grown into like a bit of a defensive juggernaut as well,” Cooper told reports in Tampa. “That’s the recipe you need to win in this league.”
The Maple Leafs made several key additions to their team this year, including 2019 Conn Smythe Trophy winner Ryan O’Reilly and Noel Acciari from the St. Louis Blues, swapping Rasmus Sandin for Erik Gustafsson, and bringing back former 1st round draft pick Luke Schenn – all moves that they hope will finally put them over the top.
“It’s a shame one of these teams has to be out, but it seems like every year you have one of these marquee matchups that hopefully you’d see down the line,” Cooper added. “With only eight teams in each conference making the playoffs, a lot of these matchups happen in the first-round matchups. But they’re good for hockey and a lot of fun.”
Tonight’s Game 1 begins at 7:30 PM EST from Scotiabank Arena in downtown Toronto.