Toronto Maple Leafs: Dream Start To The Season

So far, the Toronto Maple Leafs are proving to be worth every bit of hype they’ve gotten this summer.

Given all the hype surrounding the club as they entered the new season, the Toronto Maple Leafs would have had time dreaming up a better scenario than the club’s 4-1-0 record to start the year.

The Maple Leafs have scored 25 goals in their first five games as the high-powered offensive team has lived up to the hype to begin the season. The combination of Auston Matthews and John Tavares has proven to be lethal for the opposition as both centers currently rank first and second in the league in points.

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Matthews has scored two goals in every game this season except one where he only managed to score once.  The third-year center has 12 points which is currently the most in the league.

Tavares already has his first hat-trick with the Maple Leafs, along with a four-assist game, managing to record at least one point in every game except for one. Toronto’s offseason addition has a total of 10 points through his first five games wearing the blue and white.

Although Matthews and Tavares were expected to lead the way offensively for the Maple Leafs, Morgan Rielly and Mitch Marner have racked up their share of points as well.

Rielly sits tied with Matthews for the NHL lead in points with 12 as Toronto’s best defenseman seems poised to take the next step in his development. Rielly recorded a career-high 52 points last season and given the 24-year old’s start to the year he’s likely to surpass that total.

Marner’s three goals and seven assists has him tied with Tavares for the second-most points in the NHL. One of Toronto’s biggest questions entering the season was how Tavares and Marner play would together. The early-season return suggests the duo and their combined 20 points haven’t had any difficulty finding chemistry.

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The biggest reason behind Toronto’s offensive explosion to begin the season is the club’s powerplay, currently scoring at a 50% rate. The Maple Leafs have scored the most powerplay goals in the league, capitalizing on the man-advantage with seven goals on 14 opportunities.

It’s no secret the lethal powerplay has been the biggest reason for the club’s success especially given other teams are still seeking their first powerplay goal of the year. The Nashville Predators haven’t scored a single powerplay goal despite 15 opportunities. The Los Angeles Kings and Vegas Golden Knights are also seeking their first powerplay goal despite 13 opportunities each.

Toronto’s offense will come back down to Earth at some point but the Maple Leafs have proven when they’re firing on all cylinders they’ll be a tough club to beat. What makes the start even more impressive is they’ve made the absence of 60-point producer William Nylander completely irrelevant. Nylander’s subtraction from the lineup hasn’t impacted the club’s ability to produce offensively in any way.

With so much hype entering the season given Tavares’ arrival, it was important for the Maple Leafs to get off to a strong start. Through five games they’ve scored the most goals in the league and feature four players in the top-five for scoring. It’s only five games but it’s the exact kind of start Toronto needed.