Did The Leafs Win?

One thing you'll find on this blog more than anything as the playoffs roll on is the always-present ABT sentiment that I bring. ABT is, of course, "Anybody But Toronto", but it's something that has lived on this blog for a long time with the heavy influence that the Maple Leafs have on the Toronto-based sports media. I assure you that it has nothing to do with 1967, but that just adds a little fuel to the ABT fire when it comes to playoff hockey.

Jake DeBrusk scored twice in Boston's 5-1 victory over Toronto, so Toronto now trails in the series 1-0. It's far from over, but the Leafs looked dejected after mistakes led to goals while their own frustration in only beating Jeremy Swayman once will likely lead to a complete examination of the team's game in Game One. High-priced Leafs forward William Nylander sat out with an undisclosed injury, but I'm not sure his presence would have helped.

Boston can put Toronto in a serious hole on Monday if they can win Game Two at home, setting up what becomes an unofficial must-win for the Leafs in Game Three. If the Bruins can play as well as they did tonight in capitalizing on Toronto's gaffes along with their solid special teams play, this series may be shorter than what a number of people had predicted. We'll know more after Monday night, but the initial game between these two Original Six foes was decidedly in one team's favour just like the regular season series was.

Did the Leafs win? Let's go to Ryan Reynolds for the answer.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!