After a dismal trip through California, the Toronto Maple Leafs now return home before they kick off their final playoff push.
The club captured just one of a possible six points in games against the San Jose Sharks, Los Angeles Kings, and Anaheim Ducks this week, and with that, Toronto has now fallen outside the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Maple Leafs get a three-day break before welcoming the Detroit Red Wings to the Air Canada Centre on Tuesday. But with just 18 games remaining, they'll need some inspired performances if they hope to make the postseason for the first time since 2012-13.
The biggest hindrance to their success might be their rather cruel remaining schedule. The Maple Leafs play five games against top-five clubs and seven games against teams seeded higher than them entering play Saturday.
Toronto's saving grace is that it holds the advantage as far as season series are concerned.
Here are the Maple Leafs' remaining opponents and their season results against those clubs, grouped by teams ahead of them in the overall standings (16th), teams just below them, and teams well out of the playoff race.
Teams above them:
| Rank Overall | Team | Season Series |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Capitals | 1-0-1 |
| 2 | Blackhawks | 0-0-1 |
| 4 | Blue Jackets | 0-1-0 |
| 5 | Penguins | 1-1-0 |
| 12 | Bruins | 3-0-0 |
| 14 | Predators | 1-0-0 |
Teams just below them:
| Rank Overall | Team | Season Series |
|---|---|---|
| 17 | Panthers | 3-0-0 |
| 18 | Lightning | 1-1-0 |
| 19 | Flyers | 1-1-0 |
Teams well below them:
| Rank Overall | Team | Season Series |
|---|---|---|
| 22 | Sabres | 2-1-0 |
| 24 | Devils | 1-0-1 |
| 26 | Red Wings | 2-0-0 |
| 28 | Hurricanes | 1-1-0 |
(Note: The Maple Leafs play the Blue Jackets, Panthers, Lightning, Sabres, and Red Wings twice in their final 18 games.)
That amounts to 26 games against their 13 remaining opponents so far this season. To date, Toronto's posted a 17-6-3 record against those teams.
However, while the Maple Leafs have owned their upcoming opponents for the majority of the regular season, most of those 13 clubs have been playing better hockey recently.
Over the last 10 games, only the Red Wings, New Jersey Devils, Carolina Hurricanes, and Philadelphia Flyers have accumulated fewer points than the Maple Leafs' nine.
The season so far might be on the Maple Leafs' side, but with a collection of games coming up against the league's elite and some teams riding sudden hot streaks, it won't be easy for Toronto to lock down its first playoff berth in four years.
Copyright © 2017 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.