Playoff series: Toronto vs. Montreal. Who takes it?

[93gilmour93]

I chose to compare wingers, as you said who’s better than Marner , Nylander on wing.
Centre comparisons you win.

So you don't think the leafs win in winger comparison also?

 

[Fatass]

Unless the Habs get Hasek level goaltending they don’t have a chance.

 

[Golden_Jet]

So you don't think the leafs win in winger comparison also?

No I don’t, playoff wise

 

[The90]

I chose to compare wingers, as you said who’s better than Marner , Nylander on wing.
Centre comparisons you win.

In reality you chose to compare what you felt would skew the stats the most. You know there’s no comparison to be made there. That’s why you chose such a narrow comparison.

 

[93gilmour93]

No I don’t, playoff wise

When I look at the top 6 wingers I easily take Marner Nylander Hyman Foligno over Anderson Toffoli Gallagher Drouin.

Bottom 6 may be a wash but the top 6 gives the advantage to the Leafs

 

[Notsince67]

Tough medicine coming for the overly optimistic hab fans.

 

[AvroArrow]

Unless the Habs get Hasek level goaltending they don’t have a chance.

Every team in the playoffs has a chance, 1 injury can completely change an entire series. That's the beauty of NHL playoffs, it's not like other leagues. The 8th seed has a legitimate chance every year. Stylistically Montreal is the worst matchup for us, they've done a complete 180 from the Gomez/Gionta era smurfs and are probably the most physical Canadian team. That can be a problem in the playoffs. Also our goaltending is so inconsistent. I do like our chances against anyone in the North, but there is always that possibility of our goalies shitting the bed.

For Toronto the keys to win the series are going to be

Stay healthy
Consistent goaltending
Special teams

The star players are a given, but if we want to win this series those 3 things are gonna be critical.

For Montreal

Play a heavy game
Scoring (sounds lame but they don't have a gamebreaker offensively)
Neutral zone defence


Teams that can clog the neutral zone and deny a smooth entry have been the most frustrating for us. Winnipeg did a decent job at it this year. Best way to contain the offence is to limit the number of their clean zone entries and just pressure them and make them work for a chance in the O-zone.

 

[GoBuds14]

You don't have to be the better regular season team to win a series in the playoffs.

The fact this core hasn't been able to rise above and win even a single series is definitely cause for concern. Losing to columbus proved that having more skill doesn't automatically mean we win. It takes heart and will, something the leafs haven't shown yet.

I mean that’s essentially what I was getting at. I don’t put as much stock into losing to Boston or Washington as others, since the Leafs were very competitive and played hard. The Columbus one is cause for concern without a doubt. This years teams would appear to have improved their veteran leadership and physicality, remains to be seen if that will make the difference

 

[GoBuds14]

I’m not convinced the Habs have been defence

I’m not sure what you’re saying here

 

[the paisanos guy]

We haven't been playing well lately, Leafs in 5

 

[2 others]

I voted Pam, because Ryan has never made a sale.

 

[Spring in Fialta]

Habs in 6 without hesitation.

 

[93gilmour93]

Habs in 6 without hesitation.

I suppose you drank a bunch of whiskey without hesitation before posting this also

 

[topshelf15]

Think Toronto here ...But its not going to be easy...Mtl will be looking to abuse Toronto,s skill,and drag the game into a street fight...

But Toronto just has the better overall gamechangers up front,and should be able to outscore MTL with just enough defense to keep a far weaker offense at bay

 

[CatchyTune]

Toffoli and Anderson have 11 more goals than Marner/Nylander.

Anderson and Marner have the same amount so you're basically saying Toffoli scores more goals than Nylander.

Anderson and Toffoli combined actually only have 1 more point than Marner alone...

looking at their stats Toffoli (25-11) and Anderson (17-7) are both really good "Cy Young" scorers (way more goals than assists)

 

[Byron Bitz]

I’m not sure what you’re saying here

Autocorrect, meant to say better

 

[WetcoastOrca]

Toronto would be a massive favourite and deservedly so. The one wildcard is goaltending and the Habs have the edge here but Toronto has the edge in just about everything else except physical play. Montreal would need to target the Leaf stars as often as possible and hope that they could intimidate them and reduce their effectiveness. Just like Columbus did last year. Anything can happen in the playoffs and especially in these rivalry series but the Habs would be a massive underdog. On paper, this should be a Toronto win.
I voted Toronto in 6 as I think the rivalry aspect makes it closer than some may expect.

 

[Breakers]

Montreal with their old coach would have been a closer series.

Ducharme sucks.

 

[Wats]

Leafs in 4 or 5. Duchrame is terrible.

 

[LEAFANFORLIFE23]

For Calgary or Vancouver to make the playoffs, they'd have to go on some crazy winning streak - like 7-8 straight wins or something.

That's your best case scenario? Leafs haven't won a playoff round in ages, and to counter that you're hoping to play the hypothetical hottest team in the league heading into the playoffs?

They'd be done by they got there, they'd have nothing left in the tank

 

[bobholly39]

They'd be done by they got there, they'd have nothing left in the tank

St Louis did pretty good 2 years ago

 

[Crabapple]

Went Leafs in 7. I think they go up 3-1 in the series and Montreal ties it up. Leafs finally break the streak and win game 7

 

[David Suzuki]

Who's going to score goals for the Habs

Gallagher, Anderson and Toffoli are three of the best 5 on 5 scorers in the league this season per /60.

 

[CatchyTune]

Gallagher, Anderson and Toffoli are three of the best 5 on 5 scorers in the league this season per /60.

you actually are right, while Toffoli is no surprise Anderson and Gallagher are surprising considering their goal totals arent that high.

 

[Rants Mulliniks]

you actually are right, while Toffoli is no surprise Anderson and Gallagher are surprising considering their goal totals arent that high.

Gallagher is one of the best 5 on 5 scorers in the league the past half decade. Other than Matthews (5) and OV (4), he's the only guy with more than one (3) top 50 P60 season finishes.