It’s taken 42 years, but the Leafs and their fans have the one playoff matchup they’ve been waiting for.
Toronto will face the Montreal Canadiens, its Original Six rival, in the first round of the post-season, a series that was finalized Tuesday night after the Winnipeg Jets clinched third place in the North Division with a 5-0 win over the Vancouver Canucks.
Montreal clinched the NHL’s final playoff berth by claiming a point in an overtime loss to Edmonton Monday. Winnipeg’s win Tuesday set up the playoff grid in the North Division, with the leading Leafs facing the fourth-place Canadiens, and the third-place Jets meeting the second-place Oilers.
Playoff dates for the opening round have not been set yet, but NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly has targeted May 19 and 20.
It’s likely the Leafs and Canadiens open up on May 20. Assuming the first round playoff format is built around a game day, then day-off scenario, that would put the two teams in the prime Saturday night spot on Hockey Night in Canada for game two of the series.
Toronto last faced Montreal in a playoff scenario when the Canadiens were the dominant team in the league in the late 1970s.
The two teams faced each other in 1978 and 1979, with Montreal sweeping both series.
Former Leaf Darryl Sittler, who captained the team in those playoff meetings against Montreal, recalled that the Canadiens were simply too deep a team over the course of a playoff series.
Montreal went on to win the Stanley Cup in 1979, one of their six Stanley Cup wins in the ‘70s.
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2021-05-12 03:11:15Z
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