The Toronto Maple Leafs, once again, were defeated by the Boston Bruins at TD Garden in game seven of the first round.
This is the fourth time since 2013 that they have lost to them in that same situation. It is a nightmare matchup for them in the first round at this point.
The Leafs went up 1-0 in the third period but it only lasted for 81 seconds before the Bruins tied it. David Pastrnak eventually won it in overtime and the Bruins will move on to play the Florida Panthers in the second round.
Now, the Leafs have to move on looking for answers. Why did they lose this series again? These are the three biggest reasons that come to mind:
Health was not on the side of the Toronto Maple Leafs in this series
After playing all 82 games, William Nylander was out for the first game of the series. Whatever he was dealing with lingered for a while and he ended up missing the next two as well.
Nylander came back in game number four. Only two periods went by before Auston Matthews then left and didn't return. He ended up missing games five and six as well but the Maple Leafs won them both and forced game seven.
Matthews returned for game seven and it felt like the band was going to be completely back together. That is until we got the news that made this franchise feel cursed.
Goalie Joseph Woll came in for Ilya Samsonov for games five and six when they won. He was brilliant in both of his starts and gave the Leafs a chance to win based on his incredible play.
In game seven, however, Woll wasn't even healthy enough to be the backup. Samsonov went back in and played well but they still lost in the end.
If the Leafs want to win the Stanley Cup with their current core, they need everyone healthy and playing well at the right time.