TO can absolutely take Winnipeg. They have completely outplayed them all but one of the games they have played them. Winnipeg and Edmonton will be a fun series to watch (since they will finish 2nd and 3rd) either Haleybuck will steal it or McDavid will carry the team to victory. In either case TO will roll em in the 2nd round.

So if Edmonton and Winnipeg meet in the 1st round, that means Toronto faces... Montreal? Good luck with Playoff Carey Price.

WPG is 2-1-1 vs Toronto so far but the two teams meet 6 more times. Don't count your chickens just yet.

And in those 4 games, TO should have won 3 by a landslide. Haleybuck stole 1 and in two others TO should have won big. But he kept them in it. Winnipeg gives up monster chances constantly and against a team as dangerous as TO specifically Matthews, that is a recipe for disaster. TO can handle Montreal, at the end of the day their offence is weak in comparison and Matthews, JT and the rest of the top 6 is just better. Montreal has speed but so does TO. If Montreal made it into 3rd and takes on Edmonton I'd give them a better chance. Their speed vs Edmonton would be scary for you. Plus beyond your top 4 forwards, their entire forward roster is league's better than Edmontons. Depth matters and you have none.

This is exactly my point. In the playoffs a hot goalie will kill you, and Carey Price has a habit of getting hot in the playoffs. Don't count MTL or WPG as an easy mark for Toronto, they aren't.

Not an easy out but I think if you give Matthews as many high danger chances as Winnipeg gives up, it's not going to go over well. Of course health is everything. Montreal is hailed as this amazing playoff team but I don't see it. Price isn't what he used to be and they don't have any game breakers. This year TO isn't having to take on Boston or Tampa in the first round. For once they don't have to take on a top 3 team in the first round. And before you mention Columbus, that was a 3 game series and those were crap shoots. Give a team another 2 games and the averages would even out. The shorter the series the more the outliers can be a difference. Long term, it doesn't work that way. Could their be an upset? Sure but it's not as common as anyone thinks. Usually the team that is supposed to win does, unless injuries take over. Although in the NHL, the west has been a crap shoot.

if the habs were to miss the playoffs, habs fans would still say their better built for the playoffs

Gotta say I'm not very confident the leafs can beat Winnipeg. Everyone else they should easily walk over though.

Winnipeg is a mirage. You just can't succeed by giving up 20 shots from the slot a period

They have a bad defense, yes.
But that's it. If this team had a defense like Carolina or Colorado they'd be favourites for the cup in my opinion.
They have a stacked forward crew, both their stars and depth (almost as good as Toronto's, even though Toronto's is stacked). They have the best goalie in the league. If they add someone like Savard, I think they'd be the favourites to beat the leafs.

I don't think their defence is that bad, I think their system is garbage. And it's not changing. Over 7 games, who is going to win the battle between Matthews getting 5 shots from his wheelhouse a game against Haleybuck? I don't care who's in net, you give Matthews that many golden opportunities, he's scoring a lot.

They've got a 500 record against the jets. And playoffs are often defined by depth, toughness, and goaltending, which the jets are the better team. Of course Defense is also very important, and the leafs have the edge. I can't wait for the second round matchup between these 2, they are my 2 favourite teams.

Mine too but they don't worry me for the Leafs. I think our defence gives us a huge edge vs Winnipeg

The leafs are a significant step behind in net though...

Campbell has been a lot closer to Halley than Winnipeg's defence has been to ours.

Now, maybe, but Campbell is bound to cool off a bit, and Winnipeg is likely going to add a defenseman at the deadline.

As I said I don't think their defenceman are the problem. The system is essentially what Babcock had, leave the front of the net wide open and hope for a pile of rush chances to outscore your problems. That is not a system that is going to work against teams with good structure who can score. Montreal will struggle with that, as I think Edmonton could at times as well since everyone not named McDavid or Draisaitl just isn't good enough to hurt Winnipeg but against TO that is just the worst game plan.

*defencemen*

I know how much spelling and grammar mean to you.

It wasn't a good game by Winnipeg but TO can certainly make them pay.

It's gonna be one heck of a series. After seeing them today, I honestly don't know who I'd predict in a series right now.

The Leafs have been the better team in all but one game. Winnipegs style is the best for TO.