NHL reveals start date for Leafs' first-round playoff series
The Toronto Maple Leafs have a start date for their first round playoff series.
The NHL announced today that Game 1 between the Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins will take place on Saturday at 8 pm ET.
All eight Eastern Conference teams will begin their First Round series this upcoming weekend. Which teams will be playing when? We have you covered. #StanleyCup
More details: https://t.co/JriEhmfKwR pic.twitter.com/HkhaIYrjfx
— NHL Public Relations (@PR_NHL) April 17, 2024
This is the second game on the NHL’s playoff schedule, as the postseason will start with a battle between the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Islanders earlier on Saturday.
The NHL also revealed two of the games planned for Sunday, including the Tampa Bay Lightning against the Florida Panthers at 12:30 pm ET and the Washington Capitals against the Presidents’ Trophy winners in the New York Rangers at 3 pm ET.
The schedule for the rest of the series is yet to be announced. Fans can expect that information to become public over the coming days.
The Maple Leafs found out they’d be playing the Bruins in the first round last night. The two teams finished second and third in the Atlantic Division. The Bruins will have home-ice advantage after finishing as the higher seed.
These two teams obviously have a long history of playoff battles. The Bruins knocked out the Leafs in three unique seven-game series in the 2010s, the most recent of which came in 2019.
The current Bruins feature some familiar faces from that team, including now-captain — and renowned pest — Brad Marchand.
Getting the Bruins in the first round offers the Leafs a chance to exorcise the ghost of past playoff runs early.
The winner of the series between the Maple Leafs and Bruins will face off against the winner of the series between the Panthers and Lightning.
The Maple Leafs advanced to the second round last year before falling to the Panthers.
The current core group, which includes Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, John Tavares, and William Nylander, is still looking for its first deep playoff run.
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