Auston Matthews Issues Comments Following Leafs Locking Up First Round Series Vs. Senators

The Toronto Maple Leafs came into the season with a lot of pressure, considering they had just been ousted in the first round for 7th time in 8 years, they had a new head coach behind the bench, and had an inexperienced goaltending tandem in between the pipes coming into the 2024-25 season.

Fast forward to the middle of April and all of that was washed away as Craig Berube led the Maple Leafs to their first division title since 1999-00, with the exception of the makeshift North Division crown they won during the realignment in 2020-21.

Everything seemed to click at the right time and Leafs captain Auston Matthews couldn't be more confident about his group heading into their first round matchup against the Ottawa Senators:

It's hard not fall in the same boat as the Leafs captain because a lot of things went right for the team this year and at the most opportune moments. Their goaltending was spectacular, the defense has vastly improved, and the offense was clicking for most of the year.

Dating back to the 1st of February, the Leafs posted a 21-7-2 record and outscored their opposition 109 to 81. In a more recent stretch, the Leafs are 12-2-1 over their last 15 games and have scored 54 goals to their opposition's 31.

The Maple Leafs will need the Core 4 to replicate their end-of-season success heading into the playoffs, but based on their consistency, that might not be an issue this time around -- especially with Craig Berube at the helm.

Matthews has 11 goals and 28 points over his last 22 games, Mitch Marner has 11 goals and 29 points over his last 24 games, William Nylander has 12 goals and 26 points over his last 23 games, and John Tavares has 17 goals and 29 points over his last 26 games. Individually, no one went more than 5 games without a point in their respective streaks.

They still have one game left on the docket against the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday night before the Battle of Ontario can commence over the weekend, However, things look a lot better considering how hot they've been and the fact that they were at least able to avoid a Floridian team in the first round.

It's going to be an epic playoff series and the Maple Leafs seem confident and ready for whatever challenges come their way.