Maple Leafs Rumors & News

Daily Faceoff "It’s a melancholy annual tradition during the Toronto Maple Leafs’ hiatus from second-round playoff hockey, which extended to 18 years with their Game 7 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning last Saturday: the players and management meet with media a few days later for an extended end-of..." May 17

Bleacher Report "Evgeni Malkin has played nearly 1,000 regular-season games and another 177 in the playoffs while establishing himself as one of the most prolific players in recent history. Three Stanley Cups, two scoring titles, a most valuable player award and better than 500 goals and 1,300 points..." May 17

Pro Hockey Rumors "Any team that faces a first-round exit will draw questions about the future of its management and coaching staff, especially so when it is the same result year after year. The Toronto Maple Leafs haven’t moved past the first round since 2004, meaning those questions are getting louder and..." May 17

Daily Faceoff "In Round 1, Daily Faceoff resident coach Jon Goyens identified eight key battlegrounds that had significant impacts on the outcome of each series. He was the first to use the word ‘boring’ to describe the start of that Calgary-Dallas series, which ended up being..." May 17

Daily Faceoff "Okay. That was extreme. Pretty sure the hockey universe is still measuring its collective heart rate after five Game 7s over two days to close out the first round of the NHL playoffs. Early on in those series, though: I have to admit to being disappointed in the quality of the games on the ice...." May 17

TSN "It's Toronto or bust for Jason Spezza. The 39-year-old forward said on Tuesday that if he returns for a 20th NHL season in the fall, it will only be with the Toronto Maple Leafs. "This is the only place I would play," the Mississauga, Ont. native..." May 17

Daily Hive "A trip to the movies apparently involved a terrifying incident for Toronto Maple Leafs star Mitch Marner. A Monday night carjacking in Toronto reportedly involved Marner being held up at gunpoint. Toronto Police Operations tweeted about a carjacking on Monday evening, saying..." May 17

Complex "The Toronto Maple Leafs’ Game 7 curse lasted well after the final buzzer rang on Saturday night. After the team failed to advance to Round 2 of the playoffs yet again, their fans began to take out their anger on each other.  A video shot from section 319 of the..." May 16

The Athletic "The devastating loss was still fresh after Game 7 and other teams were already talking about picking apart the Maple Leafs front office and roster. Some of it was schadenfreude. But there was hope, too. A few clubs I heard from sounded like they wanted to see..." May 16

Clutch Points "The Toronto Maple Leafs were defeated in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. That’s a phrase attributable to any of the past six NHL seasons and still holds true in 2022. The Leafs blew a 3-2 series lead against the Tampa Bay Lightning and were defeated 2-1 in Game 7, once again..." May 15

The Hockey Writers "The Minnesota Wild had high expectations for the playoffs following a franchise-best campaign in the 2021-22 NHL season. Unfortunately, the St. Louis Blues proved to be too tough of a task to handle in the opening round as they eliminated the Wild in six games. Outside of Kirill..." May 15

Pro Hockey Rumors "Despite relatively low fanfare, one of hockey’s biggest names is set to be become an unrestricted free agent this summer. New Jersey Devils defenseman P.K. Subban will become a UFA for the first time in his career, having just finished the final year of an eight-year, $72MM..." May 15

The Score "Morgan Rielly, the Toronto Maple Leafs' longest-tenured player, crouched over and lowered his head. Jason Spezza, possibly on the ice for the final time as an NHLer, rested his chin on the knob of his stick and stared into the middle distance. Other players slumped similarly, each wearing a..." May 15

Larry Brown Sports "The Toronto Maple Leafs had their best team in years, but they still were unable to shake a difficult streak that has been plaguing them. The Leafs lost 2-1 to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday in Game 7 of their Eastern Conference first round playoff series. The heartbreaking Game..." May 15

The Hockey Writers "The Chicago Blackhawks are expected to be one of the busiest teams this offseason. General manager (GM) Kyle Davidson has made it clear that the club is rebuilding and more moves should be on the way. However, although this is the current state of the team, that doesn’t..." May 14

The Score "Toronto Maple Leafs forward William Nylander is about to suit up for his fourth career Game 7, and he's learned a couple lessons along the way. "I think we came out a little flat in those games - like we were a little bit scared to lose," Nylander said of..." May 14

Clutch Points "The Tampa Bay Lightning and the Toronto Maple Leafs have an extremely important date this Sunday night, as they will be playing Game 7 of their scintillating first-round series. The Bolts are looking to keep their hopes alive for a three-peat, having won the last two editions of the Stanley Cup..." May 14

Daily Faceoff "If you count yourself among the endlessly suffering Toronto Maple Leafs fans, you know the signs of a team that has quit: hangdog looks, shaking heads, holding onto the puck for too long or too little, prickly comments to the media, maybe even angrily firing pucks into empty nets after allowing..." May 14

The Hockey Writers "One game for all the marbles. The Toronto Maple Leafs and Tampa Bay Lightning get set to duel it out one more time as their first-round series is going the distance. It’s been a back-and-forth affair to say the least and each game has been so different. Entertaining as hell, Game 7 is..." May 14

The Athletic "Welcome to a weekend of Game 7s. If your favorite team isn’t playing in one, prepare to be entertained. If they are, well, prepare for pain. Whenever I make a ranking, I know what I’m in for. It’s a fun format to play with, and readers usually enjoy them, but..." May 13

ESPN "While the first round of the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs has included a few too many blowouts for our liking, it has also provided at least three Game 7s, the ultimate "tension convention." According to ESPN Stats & Information, Saturday will be the first time..." May 13

The Score "You can blame the officiating. Or you can blame the costly mistakes. Your call. The fact of the matter is the Toronto Maple Leafs woke up Friday still alive in the NHL postseason. They again failed to close out a first-round series Thursday, this time against the back-to-back champs,..." May 13

Daily Faceoff "And just like that, just when the moment seemed to be at hand for the Toronto Maple Leafs to banish their many ghosts to purgatory, poof, the moment was gone. Stop us if you’ve heard this before. As the Tampa Bay Lightning surged onto the ice at Amalie Arena to..." May 13

ESPN "The 2021-22 NHL season included a great deal of highlights, from the dominance of the Colorado Avalanche and Florida Panthers to the goal-scoring prowess of Auston Matthews and Chris Kreider to spectacular goaltending from Igor..." May 13

Sportsnet "Toronto Maple Leafs centre Auston Matthews, Edmonton Oilers centre Connor McDavid and Nashville Predators defenceman Roman Josi have been named finalists for the 2022 Ted Lindsay Award. The award, voted by NHL players, is presented to..." May 13

Pension Plan Puppets "Today the Maple Leafs have signed their two 2020 drafted prospects, forward Roni Hirvonen and defender Topi Niemelä. Both with get three-year ELCs that begin next season. The deals have identical AAVs of $856,666. Hirvonen and Niemelä were both on the WJC team for Finland,..." May 13

Daily Faceoff "A few months back, I wrote an article for The Coaches Site about a term I coined: ‘Trap Goals.’ I came up with the idea after working remotely for an NHL head coach during the 2020 and 2021 Stanley Cup playoffs. During pre-scouts and analyzing in-game..." May 12

The Athletic "What kind of teammate is Jack Campbell? Trevor Lewis went for ice cream once with Campbell when the two were playing for the L.A. Kings. A spot in Hermosa Beach. Lewis happily gobbled down a flavour of the week creation. Campbell took note. “Every..." May 12

ESPN "Boston Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy said something absolutely astonishing before Game 3 against the Carolina Hurricanes. He announced a goalie change from Linus Ullmark to Jeremy Swayman, which was to be expected when one is down in a series. But to justify his..." May 12

Sportsnet "Toronto Maple Leafs centre Auston Matthews, Edmonton Oilers captain Connor McDavid and New York Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin are the finalists for the 2022 Hart Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player. The finalists were named..." May 12

The Hockey Writers "The Toronto Maple Leafs have no shortage of motivation heading into Game 6 against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Leafs are just one win away from advancing to the second round of the playoffs for the first time since 2004. They are just one win away from silencing the haters who have been..." May 12

TSN "Thomas Chabot will serve as Team Canada's captain at the 2022 IIHF World Championship in Finland. Hockey Canada announced Thursday that Chabot will wear the "C," while Montreal Canadiens winger Josh Anderson, Winnipeg Jets forwards Pierre-Luc Dubois and Adam Lowry,..." May 12

Sportsnaut "The Vegas Golden Knights suffered a disappointing end to the 2021-22 NHL season, tumbling out of a playoff spot over the final few months. This is the first time in franchise history that they’ve missed the playoffs. As a result, head coach Peter DeBoer has found his name swirling in the..." May 11

The Athletic "I checked in on the “Trending” channel on social media after the first period of Game 5. The Maple Leafs were in the midst of what looked like another inglorious meltdown, getting stomped by the Tampa Bay Lightning and fortunately escaping the first 20..." May 11

The Score "Will demons be exorcised at Amalie Arena on Thursday? Following a wild 4-3 victory Tuesday, the same Toronto Maple Leafs core that's failed to close out consecutive series against the Boston Bruins, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Montreal Canadiens now has a chance to eliminate the..." May 11

Daily Faceoff "For 23 minutes and 35 seconds, Game 5 was Hell on ice for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Especially for goaltender Jack Campbell, whose supposed redemption was quickly and mercilessly contorted in a funhouse mirror. After being pulled by coach Sheldon Keefe in Toronto’s 7-3 Game 4..." May 11

Maple Leafs Hot Stove "Jon Cooper addressed the media after his team’s 4-3 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinal series. On giving up a 2-0 lead: We are not really making them earn it. We are kind of giving it to them. Two..." May 11

Sportsnet "Toronto Maple Leafs winger Michael Bunting, Anaheim Ducks centre Trevor Zegras and Detroit Red Wings defenceman Moritz Seider are the finalists for the Calder Trophy, presented to the NHL's rookie of the year. Bunting led all..." May 11

The Athletic "This has been a strange first round on a number of fronts. Scoring is up, penalties are being called, teams are holding onto multi-goal leads, the margin of victory has never been higher, and series have never been closer. It’s been a very different Stanley Cup playoffs. The..." May 10

The Hockey Writers "You’ve heard the news. Jeff Blashill will not be behind the Detroit Red Wings’ bench next season, and now the search for Hockeytown’s next head coach has begun. General manager Steve Yzerman has the ultimate say in who will fill that vacancy, but he did say this..." May 10

ESPN "The 2021-22 NHL season included a great deal of highlights, from the dominance of the Colorado Avalanche and Florida Panthers to the goal-scoring prowess of Auston Matthews and Chris Kreider to spectacular goaltending from Igor..." May 10

Daily Faceoff "For this week’s edition of McKenna’s Musings, I decided to stay in my lane. All goalie. During the Stanley Cup playoffs, there’s never a shortage of crease-related topics. So here’s a closer look at two of the major goaltending..." May 10

ESPN "Each series in the 2022 Stanley Cup playoffs has now gotten through Game 4, with no shortage of goalie drama, blowouts and controversy with on-ice officials. This postseason has certainly been thrilling, and following wins Monday by the Florida..." May 10

The Score "Scorers can't be stopped Disregard the old saying that it's harder to score in the postseason. Offense surged in 2021-22 to heights unseen in 26 years, and the trendline has kept rising in May. Teams combined to score 6.28 goals per game..." May 10

Daily Faceoff "The Montréal Canadiens picked the Wright time to bottom out in the NHL standings. Yes, the pain of finishing in 32nd place some 300 days after skating in the Stanley Cup Final is real, but the payoff is the Canadiens now hold the best odds in the history of the NHL Draft..." May 10

Egotastic Sports "Maple Leafs fan Claudianne Godbout, an Instagram model and Toronto's hottest CPA, is ready for a big Game 5.  The series with the Lightning is tied up at two game apiece. Claudianne pulled out her trusty Maple Leafs jersey for tonight's game. " May 10

The Athletic "How many NHL coaches woke up on Monday, heard that Barry Trotz was freshly unemployed and audibly groaned? Fifteen? Twenty? Thirty-one? Yep, a big, unexpected name has cannonballed into the coaching carousel. It seems we can thank Lou Lamoriello for that. Now,..." May 10

ESPN "It's round 1 of the Stanley Cup playoffs, and the Boston Bruins are facing the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 2 in Raleigh, North Carolina. Tensions flare early, as Boston winger David Pastrnak collides with Carolina goalie Antti Raanta,..." May 09

Pro Hockey Rumors "The roster is set, with just a few days to go before things kick off for Hockey Canada at the 2022 IIHF World Championship. The defending gold medalists will be icing a rather youthful roster this season, highlighted by some of the league’s up-and-coming stars, along with some established..." May 09

The Score "Toronto Maple Leafs captain John Tavares was critical of his performance in the Stanley Cup Playoffs after a lopsided 7-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 4 on Sunday. "I mean, I haven't been able to produce offensively as I'd like and I would still..." May 09