The NHL season has arrived for the Toronto Maple Leafs. They’ll be opening their regular season account with their first game against the Montreal Canadiens. This historic rivalry will be the season opener for both teams, and it has been for the last four years. The Maple Leafs have a busy opening week to the season. Let’s take a look at all the storylines heading into these games.
Leafs Opening Week
Game One: At Montreal
As mentioned, the Maple Leafs will be visiting the Canadiens in the first game of the regular season. These two teams have a long history, not just individually in the league, but as rivals too. According to Statmuse, the Leafs and Habs have shared the ice a total of 768 times. Every time these two teams meet, it’s typically an exciting occasion. There’s never a dull moment, even if it’s just a preseason game between the two sides.
For example, the last time these two teams met at the Bell Centre, things got a little ugly. The Habs played several of their star players in this game, while the Leafs were playing more fringe players. One skater in the Leafs lineup, Cedric Pare, is trying to make an impression on the new coach, Craig Berube. While on the penalty kill, Canadiens forward, Patrik Laine was coming down the middle of the ice. As Pare tried to get in Laine’s way, they collided knees, and Laine got the worst of it. The Montreal forward is going to miss 2-3 months. In response, Arber Xhekaj chased after Pare on his next shift and pummelled him with his gloves on. As a result, Xhekaj was ejected from the game.
While Pare and Laine won’t be featuring in this game, Xhekaj is set to make his season debut. All eyes will be on him and expect some physicality in this tilt. The Bell Centre will be rocking in this NHL classic.
Game Two: At New Jersey
Straight out of the gates, the Maple Leafs are experiencing a back-to-back situation. After Montreal, they’ll be travelling to Newark to take on the New Jersey Devils. Not only is this an exciting matchup between two teams with high-flying skill, there’s a little more to it. Both these teams have a new head coach to start the new season.
The Leafs brought in Berube, formally of the St. Louis Blues. The Devils hired Sheldon Keefe, formally of the Maple Leafs. This will be the first time Keefe revisits his old team. Toronto ultimately let go of Keefe because he couldn’t get it done in the playoffs. Even though he got the Leafs past the first round in the 2022-23 season, it wasn’t enough for the franchise. Now he has the opportunity to stick it to his former employers and will hope to pick up a win in front of his home fans.
Keefe has been off to a great start with the Devils. He recorded back-to-back wins against the Buffalo Sabres in the NHL Global Series in Prague. However, Berube and the Leafs will want to challenge New Jersey’s perfect start.
Game Three: Versus Pittsburgh
Toronto will finish their week with their home opener on Saturday night. Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins will be coming to town. However, not only will one of the greatest players of the last generation grace the ice at Scotiabank Arena, but someone else will be visiting, but won’t be on the ice. That individual is none other than Pittsburgh’s president of hockey operations and general manager, Kyle Dubas.
Dubas was the former general manager of the Maple Leafs, and many fans don’t forget how he left the team. Leafs president, Brendan Shanahan revealed that he wouldn’t be renewing Dubas’ contract with the Maple Leafs. In Dubas’ farewell presser, he said he didn’t have it in him to go someplace else and that he wanted to use the time to spend with his family. However, despite those comments, the Penguins pitched him an offer to become president and GM and he took the offer. Therefore, fans like to preview this matchup as a revenge episode against Dubas.
Main Photo Credit: Eric Bolte-Imagn Images
