What’s Next?
On Wednesday night, the Toronto Maple Leafs will have a home game against the Buffalo Sabres. Following that, they will travel to Boston for a rematch against the Bruins on Thursday. Conversely, the Bruins will be playing the second game of a back-to-back series against the Edmonton Oilers tonight, and they will have a day off before facing the Maple Leafs on Thursday night. It’s worth noting that both the Bruins and the Maple Leafs will be playing their third game in four nights when they meet in Boston.
In order for the Toronto Maple Leafs to maintain any hope of closing the gap and catching up to the Boston Bruins for second place in the Atlantic Division, they will need a few outcomes to go in their favor. Firstly, they will have to rely on the Edmonton Oilers defeating the Bruins on Tuesday night. Following that, the Maple Leafs must secure victories in both their upcoming games against the Buffalo Sabres and the Bruins in Boston the following night. If they manage to achieve this, it would leave the Maple Leafs trailing the Bruins by just four points, with the added advantage of having two games in hand. This scenario would give Toronto a fighting chance to close the gap and potentially overtake Boston in the standings.
Two Good Notes
Positive Note #1: It was certainly a relief to witness that Ilya Lyubushkin emerged unharmed after absorbing a high hit from Matt Rempe during Saturday night’s game.
Positive Note #2: While it may not hold immediate significance for Morgan Rielly, his assist on John Tavares’ goal allowed him to surpass Tim Horton and claim the third position in the all-time franchise scoring for a Maple Leafs defenseman. However, Rielly still has a considerable gap to close in order to catch up to the top two positions. Currently, with 459 points, he trails second-place Tomas Kaberle by 61 points (520 points). Moreover, Rielly is 309 points behind the first-place holder, Borje Salming (768 points).
