4 Takeaways From Maple Leafs’ 4-1 Win in Game 1

It was the start they needed coming off five straight playoff series losses at the hands of the Boston Bruins – dating back to the 1969 quarterfinals. And while it’s just one game, the Toronto Maple Leafs grabbed home-ice advantage in a series where they came in as underdogs to the physical, high-powered Bruins.

That said, the Maple Leafs did steal a win in Game 1, holding the Bruins number one line to just one goal and finding a way to out hustle the home team for most of the game. While that’s a small takeaway from Toronto’s 4-1 victory in their opening game, here’s a few more thoughts on the team’s big win.

Fourth Line Contributions

Less than three minutes in, Maple Leafs’ forward Trevor Moore laid a big hit in the offensive end on Bruins’ defenceman Brandon Carlo. The size difference between the two is noticeable. But it’s nothing like when Moore threw the body on six-foot-nine defenceman Zdeno Chara.

While the line only saw less than 10 minutes of ice-time through Game 1, their physicality made them a valuable 10 minutes and showed the Bruins that the smaller Maple Leafs were, indeed, a force to be reckoned with.

But it wasn’t just Moore. Connor Brown showed that he, too, can throw around his body with a big hit on Marcus Johansson.

But the fourth line for the Maple Leafs also outplayed their opponents with the puck as well as on the physical side of it. While the fourth line for the Bruins finished the night with a Corsi For Percentage (CF%) of 33.3 at five-on-five, while the Maple Leafs’ trio of Moore, Brown and Frederik Gauthier finished the game with a 44.4 CF% at five-on-five.

Tempers will certainly flare as the series progresses, but if the Maple Leafs can keep their penalty killers off the ice the way they did in Game 1, it’ll limit the chances for the Bruins’ trio that has had so much success against them over the years.

Either way, it’ll be a different game on Saturday when the two teams face-off for Game 2 in Boston. And while there will surely be more to take away from that matchup, the Maple Leafs have a good opportunity to take a commanding lead in this series.

*Stats from Natural Stat Trick