`Four different leagues under one umbrella'
It's tough to measure how Leafs stack up against defending Stanley Cup champs
Just how good are the Toronto Maple Leafs these days?
This isn't meant as a rhetorical question. Although, it might seem like one following Toronto's three-game sweep of the Edmonton Oilers, in which the Leafs gave up just one goal and held Connor Mcdavid without a point and Leon Draisaitl to one assist.
It was a statement-making performance. But it wasn't just Edmonton and the rest of Canada that was served notice.
“That's the one thing that's missing from this, is that it's almost like we're playing in four different leagues under one umbrella,” said Tampa Bay Lightning head coach Jon Cooper. “If there's ever an argument (of why you should play everyone in the league), this proved it.
“You watch the Leafs now and we can't measure ourselves against the Leafs.”
For teams in Canada, Toronto has become the team to beat.
As of Thursday morning, the Leafs held a nine-point lead over the Winnipeg Jets for first place in the North Division standings. With the season almost at the halfway mark, Toronto has become the favourite to reach the conference final.
The only question is whether that also makes them the favourites to win the Stanley Cup.
How good are the Leafs? Well, we now know they're better than the Oilers. But are they better than the Lightning, who won the Cup last year?
Well, that's a little bit trickier. All you can go on right now are their records, which are nearly identical, but which might as well be viewed inside a vacuum.
While Toronto headed into Thursday night's game against Vancouver with a league-best mark of 18-4-2, Tampa Bay was second at 15-4-1.
The Leafs rank first in goals scored per game (3.63) and fourth in goals allowed (2.33); the Lightning are second in goals scored per game (3.55) and first in goals allowed (1.95).
Who has the edge? As Cooper said, we won't know until Toronto and Tampa Bay play against each another — a possibility that will only exist if both reach the third round of the playoffs.
“We'd have to win our division through a playoff run and they'd have to do the same thing for us ever to play them,” said Cooper. “So I think that's what's unfortunate, because it sure looks like they're one hell of a team. But you can't gauge yourself because you don't get to play them.”
The lack of inter-divisional play is why some are still looking at Toronto's early season success with a critical eye.
“Smoke and mirrors,” is how former enforcer John Scott referred to the North Division on his podcast, Dropping the Gloves. His point is that it's one thing to beat up on Ottawa and Vancouver and Edmonton. But put Toronto in with Tampa Bay in the Central or with Boston and Washington in the East and you might get a different result.
It's true that Toronto was 6-1-1 combined against Ottawa and Vancouver. But it's not like they're the only team that has it easy.
Tampa Bay is 9-1-1 against Columbus, Nashville and Detroit, who all rank in the bottom 12 of the standings. Vegas is 5-1-0 against Anaheim and San Jose, who are among the bottom seven, while Washington is
7-0-1 against Buffalo (28th) and Detroit (30th).
“Maybe it's like the Champions League in soccer,” Cooper said of the unknown that lies ahead. “You're going to play somebody in another league. That's kind of the feel it's going to have. As a hockey fan, I love watching hockey. It's just too bad we don't get to play them.”