For the first time since 2000 — 25 years ago — the Toronto Maple Leafs have won their division over a full 82-game season. And, for the first time since 2004, we’re about to embark on a playoff Battle of Ontario.

This is the ninth straight season the Leafs have qualified for the postseason, which is the longest streak in the NHL, but this is the first time this core has won the Atlantic.

In 2021, the Leafs infamously won the all-Canadian (aka North) division, leading to a playoff series where they blew a 3-1 lead to the Canadiens. That may give some fans pause about the importance of this achievement — along with some PTSD, perhaps — but it really shouldn’t. The Leafs want to give themselves as many kicks at the can as possible while their core is in its prime, and they’ve done it by first making the playoffs this year; the next step is giving themselves the best possible postseason path. This season, they’ve done that.

The Atlantic will go through Toronto, where the Leafs are 26-13-1 this season, and they are now set to play a Senators team that is 18-19-4 on the road. 

I’m not going to break down the Leafs-Senators matchup right now — we will do that later this week — but the benefit of playing a wildcard team while the Lightning and Panthers battle each other down south is the award for winning the division. The Senators are by no means an easy matchup and certainly aren’t a gimme of any kind. The Leafs will have a battle ahead of them. But this is the clear benefit. 

On Monday, I noted the following about the Atlantic on the whole:

It’s common to contrast their point totals with past Leafs seasons, but I’m not sure the comparison holds up this season. The Atlantic is simply much deeper. It has been a three to four-team division since Auston Matthews entered the league, but this season, assuming the Canadiens clinch, it’ll be the first time the division sends five teams to the playoffs. It’s a deeper group, including what was a competitive Bruins team until injuries and trades ripped their season apart.

For my money, the Leafs, Panthers, and Lightning are the three best, toughest teams in the Eastern Conference. The division winner’s 2024-25 point total isn’t reflective of those teams being watered down this season. The Panthers largely ran back their Cup-winning team, and while they lost some parts, their trade deadline moves filled those holes. The Lightning reloaded with a semi-transformational offseason, signing Jake Guentzel and bringing back Ryan McDonagh before also heavily buying at the deadline. 

There is also something to be said for the manner in which the Leafs clinched the division: by earning it. They didn’t back into the division via a Tampa loss; they went out and took care of business with a 4-0 win in Buffalo. Getting the job done tonight — and getting Mitch Marner’s 100-point milestone and Auston Matthews’ 400th goal milestone out of the way to boot — allows the Leafs to rest players in their season finale, giving their players nearly a week to rest up and prepare for the playoffs. It is anticipated that the Leafs-Senators series will start on Sunday, April 20. 

Of course, especially for this core of players, the goal of this season isn’t regular-season success, but regular-season success helps set them up for playoff success. It’s a noteworthy accomplishment for a core that has never done this before and for a franchise that has won only six division titles (five if we exclude 2020-21) in its long history. 

It’s okay to take a few moments to enjoy it before the real season begins.

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