Leafs need to shake jitters to clinch playoff spot

Leafs need to shake jitters to clinch playoff spot
April 8, 2017, 5:04 PM ET [171 Comments]
Mike Augello
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The late Al Davis uttered the phrase “Just win, Baby” as the motto for his Oakland Raiders to live by and over the next 48 hours, that is what the Toronto Maple Leafs have to do.

The Leafs have received little or no help on the out-of-town scoreboard entering the final weekend of the regular season. To clinch their first playoff appearance in a full 82-game schedule in 13 years, they will need to do it themselves by beating either against the Pittsburgh Penguins or the Columbus Blue Jackets.



Tampa Bay pulled to within a point of Toronto with an impressive road performance in Montreal, as Yanni Gourde scored twice in a 4-2 win at the Bell Centre on Friday. The Habs started goalie Carey Price (who allowed four goals on 22 shots), but scratched defensemen Shea Weber and Alexei Emelin due to injury.

The Lightning finish up at home Sunday afternoon against the Buffalo Sabres, while the New York Islanders (three points behind the Leafs) visit the New Jersey Devils on Saturday and host Ottawa on Sunday.

Buffalo and New Jersey are playing out the string on disappointing seasons and have no stake in their final game other than being spoilers, while Ottawa will sit anyone who has a bump or bruise with second place in the Atlantic Division already locked up.

Toronto needs to respond after two disappointing efforts against Washington and Tampa with the same resilience they have displayed throughout the season and not depend on the Penguins and Blue Jackets to suit up watered down lineups.

“If you look at it last game (against Tampa), you’d see the opportunity was a pretty good one with the lineup they dressed. I saw all those people--I didn’t know their names—skate us into the ground, and so suddenly I got to know some guys names.” Leafs coach Mike Babcock said after the morning skate. “So I wouldn’t spend a whole lotta time worrying about that, I’d get ready myself and do what we do and when we do that, we have a lot of success, it doesn’t matter who we play.”

The Leafs are not expected to make any lineup changes and Frederik Andersen will start between the pipes in this critical contest, while Marc-Andre Fleury gets the start in goal for Pittsburgh. Penguins coach Mike Sullivan indicated that injured veterans Evgeni Malkin and Olli Maatta have been ruled out, but would not specify who else will sit.

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette beat reporter Jason Mackey believes that Nick Bonino, Brian Dumoulin, Patric Hornqvist, Carl Hagelin and Bryan Rust will sit, but that Sidney Crosby will center the top line between Conor Sheary and Jake Guentzel.

Assuming the Leafs do win one of their final two games, losses to Washington and Tampa have made the Capitals their likely opposition in the first round, although the Bruins losing 3-1 in their season finale to Washington opens the possibility for Toronto to avoid the President’s Trophy winners.



The Senators have 98 points and have clinched second place in the Atlantic and home ice advantage in the first round with a 3-1 win at the Canadian Tire Centre.