Agreed.
I would like to see them face the Habs in round 1 because it would be highly entertaining and to get that rivalry back to the prominence of yesteryear. Avoiding Tampa for as long as possible would also be a preference but other than those two teams i'm impartial to which team they meet.
If I am a Leafs fan, I would rather take my chances with Tampa and avoid Boston.
Tampa has kinda had some playoff choking habits in recent years. 3 times in 7 years with Boston might be “oh god, not THEM again” territory,
Plus, with all due respect to Hedman, Auston Matthews really would rather deal with ANYONE not named Bergeron. (Considering his stats vs. WAS 2 years ago vs. last spring.....)
I think if he plays another team in the spring and does not have to deal with Mr. Selke, he might have a Crosby vs the Flyers type of series. How many teams in the East have a shutdown forward you can stick on Matthews?
Plus, the TD Garden has been a Leaf house of horrors. Kinda like Calgary at Anaheim, anywhere else might be better off for a team that seemingly doesn’t blink first against a Tom of teams (Ranger game aside, they still got 0+ shots and deserved a better fate)
I really think Toronto can win the East if they just can stay the heck away from the Bruins. Hell, If Boston wins game 82 last year, I think TOR/TB might have been more favorable to them.