Say what you will about the modern Toronto Maple Leafs: at the very least, they’re going to be entertaining!
Our colleagues at Daily Faceoff ranked every NHL team from most fun to least fun to watch this season and the Maple Leafs finished in third place. There’s a natural cynicism stemming from eight consecutive early playoff exits but the truth of the matter is that the Maple Leafs’ collection of raw talent is enough to make them a must-watch team for journalists and fans across the league.
Let’s hear it from Daily Faceoff’s Hunter Crowther:
The greatest goal scorer of the 21st century and two 90-point wingers. Mix in a slew of new additions, a new coach, the eyes of the hockey universe on them at all times and a never ending timeline on X of bad takes and hyperbole. What’s more watchable than that?
Auston Matthews, William Nylander and Mitch Marner are a joy to watch on a daily basis and it’s true that the Maple Leafs operate as the center of the hockey universe, with all the attendant pressure, banter, and focus that comes with being in a massive market. Bad takes and hyperbole! At the risk of seeming defensive, that may also be a function of the market itself!
Daily Faceoff’s Scott Maxwell also weighed in:
At this point, they also have that element of “Will they finally do it?” in terms of their playoff success. And if you want to hatewatch, then it’s “How will they screw this up?” That said, even as my fandom for the team wavers, I still keep coming back because it’s hard to not watch Auston, Mitch and Willy.
Toronto’s on-ice collection of talent, headlined by Matthews, Marner and Nylander often make them one of the envies of the league and viewed cumulatively through a decade-long lens, it can be baffling at times that the team hasn’t had prolonged playoff success. Entering the 2024-25 season, the Maple Leafs are widely considered among the second tier of Stanley Cup contenders, a team that led that the NHL in 5-on-5 goals during the regular season, that watched in agony as that offensive proficiency wasn’t unlocked in a seven-game playoff loss to the Boston Bruins.
Only the Edmonton Oilers and Colorado Avalanche were considered more fun than the Maple Leafs by our comrades at Daily Faceoff, and we won’t put up too much of a fight. Toronto should be extremely entertaining to watch this season and perhaps it will finally portend some better playoff results.
