The Maple Leafs Need These Five Things to Go Right

After last season’s rough 78-point finish and the Maple Leafs missing the playoffs for the first time in what feels like forever, the big question is pretty simple: how do they get back?

Jonas Siegel broke it down in The Athletic today with five things that need to go right for Toronto to climb back into the postseason. Honestly, the interesting part isn’t that any of it sounds unrealistic. It’s that they probably need most of it—almost all of it—to happen at the same time.

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For the Maple Leafs to Make the Playoffs, Five Things Must Line Up

The reality is that things need to line up when you’re trying to jump from 78 points to something like 99 or 100 in the Eastern Conference. It’s not one switch you flip. Several things have to fall into place.

First, Auston Matthews has to be Auston Matthews again. He’s coming off knee surgery, and the last couple of seasons haven’t matched what he’s normally capable of. He doesn’t have to score 70 goals for the team to be solid, but he does need to be the guy who controls games, drives the offence, finishes chances, and forces teams to defend Toronto differently. When Matthews is playing like that, everything around him usually gets easier.

Second, there’s the goaltending. Whether it’s Sergei Bobrovsky or someone else taking the bulk of the starts, Toronto just needs reliable, steady netminding. Not miracles or highlight-reel stuff every night. Just above-average goaltending that gives the team a real chance to win more often than not. If they can get that, it’s a huge step.

Third, the young players might be the most exciting part. Gavin McKenna is coming in with big expectations, and if he’s ready to contribute quickly, it changes the whole feel of the lineup. Matthew Knies still has another gear he can reach, especially at even strength, and Easton Cowan could be one of those guys who pops once he settles into a real role. They don’t have to carry the team, but they do need to make Toronto better.

Fourth, the coaching change matters, too. Jim Hiller is walking into one of the toughest jobs in hockey, and replacing Craig Berube is only the beginning. The real challenge is getting the Maple Leafs to defend more consistently, control the puck better, and handle the pressure that always seems to come with Toronto. That’s a tall order, but it’s also why he’s here.

Fifth and finally, the oldest hockey truth there is: the veterans have to stay healthy. John Tavares, Chris Tanev, and other key players are well into their 30s now. Toronto doesn’t need career years from everyone, but it does need them on the ice, doing what they’re supposed to do. If injuries pile up again, the math gets way harder.

Siegel Is Clear That the Maple Leafs’ Success Won’t Be Magic

What I liked about Siegel’s piece is that it doesn’t act like there’s one magic fix. The Maple Leafs don’t need one amazing thing to happen. They need five solid, pretty reasonable things to go mostly right at the same time.

That’s the difference between a team in the playoffs and one watching in April. None of these ideas are surprising. Getting them all to work together? That’s the hard part.

Related: Insider: Last Year Was “Really Tough” for William Nylander and Maple Leafs