Maple Leafs will face Senators in playoffs after clinching Atlantic Division
Published
The postseason Battle of Ontario is back as the Toronto Maple Leafs clinched the Atlantic Division crown with a 4-0 victory over the Buffalo Sabres on Tuesday and will face the Ottawa Senators in the first round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Steven Lorentz, Mitch Marner, Auston Matthews and Nick Robertson scored for Toronto, while Anthony Stolarz made 36 saves to earn the shutout win.
Marner reached the 100-point plateau for the first time in his career with his marker, while Matthews scored the 400th goal of his NHL career.
This is the Leafs’ first division title since they topped the all-Canadian North Division during the 56-game 2020-21 season.
The Senators locked themselves into the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference with a 4-3 OT victory over the Philadelphia Flyers on April 13.
The Leafs and the Senators have faced off four times in the postseason, with Toronto coming out on top of each meeting.
The provincial rivals last battled in 2004 with the Leafs earning a first-round, seven-game series victory, including capturing the deciding game 4-1 on home ice.
In 2002 they also went the distance, this time in the second round, and once again the series ended with Toronto claiming victory in the deciding game in their own arena.
The Leafs swept the Senators when they met in the first round of the 2001 playoffs, with goaltender Curtis Joseph earning all four victories, including shutouts in the opening two games in Ottawa.
The first time the teams clashed in the playoffs was during the 2000 postseason with each winning two at home before the Leafs closed the series out in six games.
While the Leafs hold the playoff advantage, it’s the Senators that have the recent momentum after winning all three meetings this season.
Senators goaltender Linus Ullmark turned away 21 shots to help earn a 4-2 victory over the Leafs on March 15 in Toronto to complete the season sweep.
Shane Pinto scored the third period winner for the Senators in a 2-1 victory over the Leafs on Jan. 21 in Ottawa.
Ullmark was also the star on Nov. 12 when he stopped all 27 shots to earn his first shutout with the Senators in a 3-0 victory over the Leafs at Scotiabank Arena.