5 reasons why the Toronto Maple Leafs can win the Stanley Cup
By Simon Vacca
The 2018-19 season has been a whirlwind of emotions for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Nevertheless, here are five reasons as to why they can land hockey’s top prize.
When John Tavares fulfilled a childhood dream and signed one of the most game-changing deals of all-time with the Toronto Maple Leafs, many facets of the hockey blogosphere proclaimed the Buds to be serious Stanley Cup contenders.
In large part, the buzz was warranted. The addition of Tavares provided the Leafs with a three-headed monster at center and ensured that the club would solidify itself as one of the top-scoring organizations in the National Hockey League. Sunny ways, surely, for a franchise that was placed at the bottom of the league’s standings just a few seasons back.
Nonetheless, questions lingered about some of the team’s underlying shortcomings. What of its blue line? Do they have enough compete in them? And are they still too inexperienced to enter into the ranks of contention for hockey’s ultimate prize?
From the outset of early March, those anxieties have taken center stage. Over the course of the past 11 games, the Buds have sported a 4-4-3 record, during which they’ve allowed a whopping 45 goals. Deeply unfavorable, indeed, for an organization apparently eyeing Lord Stanley’s trophy.
But the promise of better days looms larger than ever. With the likes of Jake Gardiner and Travis Dermott set to return to the club’s lineup, the blue line will be afforded the bolster that it so desperately needs. Add the fact that the team is more than capable of turning it up under pressure and you have yourself a case.
The Leafs are in a position to make a push for the Holy Grail. As Mats Sundin said best, “If you face the same team in the playoffs for a second consecutive year, you have a chance to change history and your future every time you step on the ice.”
With that, let’s explore five reasons as to why the Leafs can land the Stanley Cup.
5. The big boys are having career years
John Tavares. Auston Matthews. Mitch Marner. Morgan Rielly. Frederik Andersen.
At the very least, the aforementioned individuals are the Leafs’ five best players. And boy, are they ever having campaigns to write home about.
Tavares has reached new heights for both goals and points. Matthews and Marner are in the midst of career years, with the former having been paid a large sum of money and the latter set to earn the big bucks in the summer. Rielly is at the forefront of the Norris Trophy race, leading all defensemen in goals (20). And Andersen continues to prove that he is the club’s most important piece — this, in spite of some unfavorable starts as of late.
In short, the organization’s finest performers can usher forth victories on their own — a factor that will definitely come in handy somewhere down the road.
But do they have the depth to go all the way?