The Toronto Maple Leafs have spent the first chunk of their 2026-27 season leaning on one part of the game that has held together while everything else has been shaky.
Through 18 games, Toronto sits at 8-8-2, second last in the Atlantic Division and two points outside a playoff spot. After an offseason that brought major changes to both the management group and the roster, the start has not matched what many Maple Leafs fans were hoping for.
What has kept them from sliding further is special teams. That’s been the quiet difference-maker, the area that has repeatedly rescued them when the rest of the game has gone flat.
The power play has been one of the league’s best. Entering Sunday, Toronto ranked sixth in the NHL at 28.6 percent, trailing only the Nashville Predators, Calgary Flames, Edmonton Oilers, Anaheim Ducks and the Utah Mammoth, who were scorching at 37.1 percent. For a club that struggled badly with the man advantage for much of the 2025-26 season, that’s a sharp turnaround.
The top unit has found its rhythm again, and newcomer Darren Raddysh has been part of that boost from the point. Kirill Marchenko, Easton Cowan and rookie Gavin McKenna have also chipped in, while Auston Matthews, William Nylander and John Tavares remain the familiar core driving the attack.
Toronto’s penalty kill has been just as important, maybe even more so. The Leafs opened the year with a perfect run on the kill before settling back toward the norm, but they still own an elite 86.9 percent success rate through 18 games.
That work has been shaped by the offseason additions made by Leafs GM John Chayka. Teddy Blueger, Colton Sissons, Brandon Duhaime and Nick Paul have all been active pieces on the penalty kill, each averaging more than two shorthanded minutes per game for Toronto.
The warning sign is obvious, though: the Leafs have not been nearly as strong at 5-on-5. Special teams have covered up a lot, but they can’t be expected to carry the load forever.
Toronto will need better even-strength play if it wants to start stacking wins and move up the standings. If the special teams edge disappears, this season could go sideways in a hurry.
In Other News...
Maple Leafs' Shorthanded Lineup Fell Apart In A Brutal Home Loss
The Maple Leafs ran into a tough night at home as New Jersey kept rolling, skating away with a 4-0 win behind Connor Hellebuycks 23-save shutout. The Devils have now won five straight, with Timo Meier scoring twice and Nico Hischier adding a goal and an assist while Jack Hughes set up two more. Toronto, meanwhile, never found a way through and was blanked in front of its own crowd.
For a lineup already stretched thin by injuries, the margin for error was gone quickly, and the game only got harder as the night unfolded. The Leafs were missing several key pieces and could not generate the kind of push needed to keep pace with a Devils team that looked in control from the start, leaving Toronto with another reminder of how fragile things can get when the roster is depleted. [Read more 🡒]
Maple Leafs Face A Tough Call If A Blockbuster Opens Up
If a true blockbuster trade opportunity lands in Torontos lap, the Maple Leafs may have to decide how far they are willing to go to make it happen. The discussion starts with the kind of assets that can actually move the needle in a major deal, and that means looking beyond roster players to the future pieces that have real value around the league.
Easton Cowan is the name that will matter most in any serious negotiation, even if the case for keeping him is strong. Beyond him, Toronto can point to the first-round pick it owns from Colorado and a pair of prospects in Ben Danford and Tinus Luc Koblar, giving the club some flexibility if the right premium target suddenly becomes available. [Read more 🡒]
Canadiens Suddenly Face A Bigger Test Than Their Hot Streak
The Canadiens are doing more than riding a hot stretch right now, they are starting to look like a real problem in the Atlantic. Montreal has pushed its point streak to 10 games and sits second in the division after a 4-2 win over the Maple Leafs, with rookie goaltender Jacob Fowler emerging as a steady presence and a group led by Alex Newhook, Chris Kreider and Nick Suzuki supplying the offense.
What makes the run more interesting from here is how much of it has come while Montreal has been juggling the lineup. Ivan Demidov remains sidelined with an ankle injury, which leaves the Canadiens trying to keep their momentum going without one of their young forwards, and the next stretch will say plenty about whether this surge is built to last or just a sharp early-season burst. [Read more 🡒]