Didn't say they don't have a solid team.
And I know hockey is more than lead times. Don't patronize me. Hockey is also more than just faceoffs and forechecking, as well. And those two things most certainly don't show all-encompassingly who outplayed who.
It took them three elimination games, two overtime games, and an incredible collapse to beat us. We skated with them, measured up physically, beat them twice in their own arena, and overcame our recent history of futility against them.
For a team that was supposed to beat us handily in 5 games, it sure took them a lot of effort.
The Bruins are a better team than we are, but we played better than them for most of the series.
Game 1 - Even first period, absolute Bruins domination in the last two. Winner:
Bruins.
Game 2 - Fairly even game, but the Leafs overall played better and the scoreboard reflected their effots. Winner:
Leafs.
Game 3 - Leafs domination for the most part. There were spurts of solid play from the Bruins but the Leafs generated far more scoring chances (which they were not rewarded for) and the Bruins were opportunistic, capitalizing on every chance they got. Winner:
Leafs.
Game 4 - After the Bruins controlled the play throughout the first, the Leafs played better in the second, but oddly enough, we lead 2-0 after the first, the Bruins scoring 3 unanswered in the second, before MacArthur tied the score at 3 less than a minute later. Leafs dominated the 3rd and the OT. ****ing goalpost for Frattin. Winner:
Leafs.
Game 5 - Leafs were flying in this one and controlled the play for 45 minutes before sagging back and allowing the Bruins to take over the game for the last 15. Not enough time for Boston to overcome the 2 goal deficit. Winner:
Leafs.
Game 6 - Much like game 5, the Leafs controlled the play for much of the game but this was even more of a complete effort than game 5. Having not been able to solve Rask after 40 minutes, the Leafs couldn't sag back in the 3rd and kept pushing until they were rewarded, taking a 2-0 lead about midway through the 3rd. There was some pushback by the Bruins in the final few minutes, but overall a solid complete effort for Toronto. Winner:
Leafs.
Game 7. Fairly even game for the most part with both teams controlling the play at times. While the Leafs were opportunistic for the first time in the series and managed to build up an impressive 4-1 lead, the defenders did a good job of keeping the Bruins to the perimeter and clearing the front of the net. The Leafs had the big lead despite a pretty much evenly played game. This all changed in the last 10 minutes, when the Leafs stopped skating. We all know what happened next. Bruins carried the play for the rest of the 3rd, tying the game, the incredible momentum shift carrying over to the OT where they quickly dispatched us 5-4 in the extra frame. Colossal, catastrophic, cataclysmic collapse. Gotta give kudos to the Bruins for never giving up, although this was more us giving them the game than them taking it. Winner:
Bruins.
The Leafs probably deserved a better fate (especially with regards to the 3-1 series deficit), but that's hockey for you. The truly great teams find ways to win even when they don't play their best. The Bruins are one such team. Brad Marchand himself said before game 5 that the Leafs controlled the play for much of the series (after game 1) and that they were fortunate to be up 3-1 at that point. With the Leafs clearly being the better team in games 5 and 6, I don't think it can be argued that overall, the Leafs were the better team in the series. Hopefully that's the mentality that our players take out of this experience, rather than the epic collapse. The know now that they can compete with the best teams on any given night.