Maple leaves: 54-21-7, 115 points Lightning: 51-23-8, 110 points Season series: TOR 2-2-0; ΤΒ 2-1-1 Game 1: Monday (7:30 pm ET, Scotiabank Arena: ESPN2, CBC, SN, TVAS, BSSUN) The Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning will meet at the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time. The Maple Leafs had a regular record period in 2021-22, scoring team wins (54) and points (115). They finished second in the Atlantic Division, seven points behind the Florida Panthers, the winner of the Presidents’ Trophy, and five points ahead of third-placed Lightning. Toronto have not won a Stanley Cup playoff series since 2004 and have lost the first round in the last five seasons, including being eliminated by the Montreal Canadiens in seven games last season after leading 3-1. [RELATED: Complete Maple Leafs vs. Lightning series coverage] The Lightning are the two-time defenders of the Stanley Cup and are trying to become the first team to win three consecutive titles since the New York Islanders won four in a row from 1980-84. Everyone gets in line in a hot streak. The Maple Leafs were 7-2-1 in the last 10 games of the regular season. the Lightning was 7-3-0. Maple Leafs coach Sheldon Keefe said he understands how tough their opponent is. “It’s a huge challenge, it’s self-evident,” Keefe said. “Champions back-to-back. They have top players in all positions, great depth, great experience, obviously, so it’s a big challenge. When I look at our team, I think the harder the better, I think we need that. “We have full respect for the Tampa Bay Lightning in what they have achieved and who they are as a team, but we have a lot of faith in our room. We are ready for a battle.” Toronto could get Michael Badding back for Game 1. The rookie is trying to recover from an unknown injury and is trying to reunite with teammates Auston Matthews and Mitchell Marner. Lightning, meanwhile, enters the playoffs relatively healthy and hungry for a chance to make history. “Sure, there will be a lot of publicity campaign this round,” said Lightning captain Steven Stamkos, who grew up just north of Toronto in Unionville. “But this group is a mature group. We know how to handle many different situations that come in the playoffs. “We have to rely on our experience here.” Toy breaks Maple leaves: Matthews led the NHL with 60 goals and 44 assists. The center led the Maple Leafs to 106 points, nine more than Marner. The 24-year-old has scored seven points (three goals, four assists) in three games against Lightning this season. Lightning: Stamkos scored a hat-trick in the 6-4 victory over New York Islands on Friday. The forward’s 33 points in April are the most Lightning player in a calendar month and the most of any NHL skater in a month since Mario Lemieux was 34 in December 1995. Video: TBL @ NYI: Stamkos scores the 10th hat trick in his career Termination Maple leaves: Jack Campbell has recovered from a mid-season recession and has won eight of his last nine starts. The 30-year-old represented the Maple Leafs in the 2022 Honda NHL All-Star Game in Las Vegas and finished 31-9-6 with an average of 2.64 goals, 0.914 rebounds and five shutouts in the NHL. Rookie Erik Kallgren relied on back-up after Petr Mrazek was ruled out with an inguinal injury last month, winning 8-4-1 with 3.31 GAA, 0.888 rebounds and one shutout. Mrazek resumed skating last week, but there is no timetable for his return. Lightning: Despite showing some inconsistency afterwards, Andrei Vasilevsky tied Florida Sergei Bobrovsky for the most NHL wins (39) and had 2.49 GAA, 0.916 savings and two shutouts. He has won 34 games after the season in the last two seasons. Veteran Brian Elliott (11-4-3, 2.43 GAA, 0.912 savings rate, one shutout) is a solid backup. Numbers you need to know Maple leaves: The Maple Leafs have played 45 games since the season since the last time they won a series. The last time they qualified for the playoffs was in 2004, when they defeated the Ottawa Senators in seven games in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals. Lightning: Victor Hedman is +14 in the last two series after the season. The defender, who won the Conn Smythe 2019-20 trophy as the most valuable player in the playoffs, finished co-26 this season. X-factors Maple leaves: Bading’s return is crucial as he led all NHL rookies in points during the regular season with 63 (23 goals, 40 assists). Equally important is the sandpaper and the capacity it brings to the front line, leading opponents into penalties and creating space in the offensive zone for Marner and Matthews. Lightning: Nick Paul has been a revelation since being traded to the Senators, scoring 14 points (five goals, nine assists) in 21 games with Lightning after scoring 18 points (11 goals, seven assists) in 59 games with the Senators. The Lightning knew they were getting a natural striker in the March 20 trade, but Paul showed the kind of side score that is so vital in the playoffs. Video: WSH @ TOR: Bading scores 2nd in the game, 22nd this season They said it “The first thing that pops up is the Stanley Cups back to back. They understand how to play and win in the playoffs and we try to understand that as we move on in this series. We know these guys well. We have played them twice recently in a short time. space, so it is up to us as players to do what we have to do to prepare. ” – Maple Leafs defender Morgan Rielly “We should all feel good about ourselves μερικές A few weeks ago we gave ourselves the opportunity to win a place in the playoffs again. It is not easy to do that. Our team is very proud to give that to us. the opportunity and now is to make the most of it “. – Lightning defender Ryan McDonagh Will win if: Maple leaves: They can get out of their way. As scary a task as the power of Lightning faces in the first round, this version of Maple Leafs is the most capable in a long time. Consider this: 13 players have had the highest career level in the NHL in points this season. But recent post-season history shows that the Maple Leafs could not meet their success once it was time for the playoffs. A year ago, for example, Matthews and Marner, their top scorers, combined for a goal (by Matthews) in seven games in a row with the Canadians. The talent is there, but also the pressure of failures in the playoffs in the past. It is a mental obstacle that they must overcome. Lightning: They can stifle the Maple Leafs’s high octane power game. Playoff series are often determined by the team’s special battles, and this should not be different. Toronto had the NHL top power play (27.3 percent), led by Matthews (16 power-play goals) and William Nylander (13), so the Tampa Bay penalty shooters will be put to the test. Lightning finished 11th on penalties (80.6 percent) and scored seven short-handled goals this season, five less than the top of the Maple Leafs league. What they look like: Predicted composition of Maple Leafs Michael Bading – Oston Matthews – Mitchell Marner Alexander Kerfoot – John Tavares – William Nylander Ilya Mikheyev – David Kampf – Pierre Engvall Wayne Simmonds – Colin Blackwell – Jason Spezza Morgan Rielly – Ilya Lyubushkin Jake Muzzin – TJ Brodie Mark Giordano – Timothy Liljegren Jack Campbell Eric Calgren Scratched: Colin Blackwell, Nick Robertson, Kyle Clifford, Nick Abruzzese, Justin Holl Injuries: Rasmus Sandin (knee), Ondrej Kase (concussion), Petr Mrazek (groin) Lightning projected composition Ondrej Palat – Steven Stamkos – Nikita Kucherov Nick Paul – Braden Point – Ross Colton Alex Killorn – Anthony Cirelli – Brandon Hagel Pat Maroon – Pierre-Edouard Bellemare – Corey Perry Victor Hedman – Jan Rutta Ryan McDonagh – Erik Cernak Mikhail Sergachev – Zach Bogosian Andrei Vasilevsky Brian Eliot Scratched: Cal Foot Injuries: No one
