Britton Gray: Leafs likely won’t fall in this first round

Opinion

There’s a saying that has been around English football for a while, though it has recently come to the top of my mind as I rewatch the great TV show Ted Lasso.

“It’s the hope that kills you.”

As I watched the Toronto Maple Leafs come back from a 4-1 deficit in Tampa Bay against the Lightning to take a 3-1 series lead in their best-of-seven NHL playoff series, I feel the phrase can appropriately describe the mindset of many fans who cheer for the Blue and White.

The phrase is used by English football fans who concede defeat before the games even begin, hoping to lessen the blow of another heartbreaking defeat despite coming so close to success.

Perhaps as someone who has no fandom towards the Leafs, and one who has made his fair share of “Leafs 1967” jokes, Game 4 did feel as if the team seemed destined to put to rest the ghosts of playoffs past.

A few of my friends, who will admit they have emotional scars as Toronto faithful, seemed less swayed by the notion.

As the game went on, some of them were ready to throw in the towel after Tampa dominated play for much of Monday’s contest.

But who can blame them? Toronto and playoff disappointment have become nearly as iconic of a duo as peanut butter and jelly or Starsky and Hutch.

For Leafs fans, this series seemed destined to end like every first-round playoff series the team has had since 2004 — on the losing end and embarking on another off-season of jokes from opposing fanbases.

How could they forget seeing a 4-1 third-period lead against the Boston Bruins evaporate in 2013, with a Patrice Bergeron overtime goal ending the Leafs’ season?

Even 3-1 series leads, much like the Leafs now enjoy against Tampa Bay, have fans hesitant to believe this season could be different.

During the 2021 playoffs, the Montreal Canadiens extended the Leafs’ playoff drought, coming back from a 3-1 deficit in the series.

So even as Leafs fans celebrated Monday’s win and praised unlikely overtime hero Alex Kerfoot for completing a comeback that might’ve been thought to be improbable, there’s hesitancy to believe this team will finally find a way to slay the ever-looming playoff dragon.

But I’m here to tell fans that this team does feel different.

This is a team that went out and made the right moves — not the flashy ones.

The acquisitions of Ryan O’Reilly, Noel Acciari and Luke Schenn brought some key playoff experience, with O’Reilly already proving why he’s known as a big-time playoff contributor.

Toronto’s core of Auston Matthews, Morgan Rielly, John Tavares and Mitch Marner have been embarrassed in previous playoff defeats and should be more motivated than ever to finally give their fanbase more hockey than it has seen in nearly 20 years.

So to the Toronto faithful, I offer more of Lasso’s words of wisdom: “It’s the lack of hope that kills you.”

So start believing, Leafs Nation, because this team is proving it’s ready to take that next step.