Toronto Maple Leafs vs Boston Bruins

Most Sens fans are cheering for the Bruins, cause they hate the Leafs, at least in public, since most of them used to be Leafs fans. They still have a soft spot. Habs fans are cheering for both teams to somehow eliminate each other. Not sure how that would happen, but the NHL does like to create and impose weird and nonsensical rules every now and then, usually at the worst of times.

That said, it would seem the vast majority of people are picking the Bruins to win. They're wrong. Some have even picked them to go all the way. Those people are really wrong.

Look, statistically the Leafs and Bruins are not separated by much more than a coin flip, and that's why the teams have to actually play the games. Stats and comparisons have been broken down by many people already, so I won't get into that, but I will cover a whole bunch of intangibles.

First off, Toronto is a young and talented team, with sprinkled veterans exactly where you need them to be. Boston is not. Their work horses are aging and frankly don't look that hungry. Toronto has six UFAs this year, three of whom will be playing for their cash out contracts, with the other guys trying to extend their NHL careers. There are also some RFAs which aren't going anywhere, but they're not playing for money, no, they're playing for roster positions. That's even bigger. Boston has seven UFAs, with one being a backup goalie, and only one of those remaining six making over a million a year (Rick Nash). There's a lot less desperation there, and as one of the many cliches in hockey, desperate hockey wins games.

This Toronto team also has something that Boston does not – thirst. They want the win. For the city. For the team. For each other. For the coach and the management. Boston has tasted victory many times, both in hockey and outside of it. Past results aren't predictive of future results, but they've had their time, and it's time to move past Massachusetts. The young guns, Matthews, Nylander, Marner, and company don't understand what it's like to quit, and they won't. The calming presence of Marleau and Andersen will keep them in check, but their spirits will ride and carry the team. Just watch the smiles and the momentum it builds for them. And yes, Marleau. The Leafs Old Guy Without A Cup. That would be one of the other story lines to fight for. Out of nowhere, Marleau signs with Toronto, shows up, and wins a Cup. A brilliant story. In light of recent events here in Saskatchewan, Marleau (and Bozak) being from the province seems to tie it all together.

Andersen versus Rask. Again, the numbers are similar, but there's always an X factor, and that is that simply put Andersen is guaranteed to steal at least one game. Completely steal. Not just outplay Rask, but Andersen will take a game where for whatever reason Toronto looks out of it, be it a series of bad breaks or bad trip to whichever arena, and he'll win the game for them. Rask doesn't possess that ability, not in the way Andersen does. If it goes to a figurative shootout, Andersen will still pull out highlight reel saves despite the score being 5-5. Think Fuhr. He'll do what is required to get the win.

Of course, we can't forget the pest race – Kadri versus Marchand. Both have their roles, but Kadri can effectively shut down Marchand's line, and Kadri seems to be better at drawing a couple penalties while walking the line, whereas Marchand always seems capable of taking a few, if not getting himself thrown out for a few games. Speaking of, been a few months since he did something really boneheaded, so he's due for another act of selfishness and stupidity.

I'll take the Leafs all the way, winning games 1, 3, 4, and 6.

I could be a homer, or I could be a genius. There's no corsi rating for that.