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Bruins Set To Face Off Against Maple Leafs In First Round Of Playoffs

By Michael Hurley, CBS Boston

BOSTON (CBS) -- It took until the final night of the regular season, but the Boston Bruins now know their first-round playoff opponent.

With Tampa Bay earning the top spot in the Atlantic Division, the Bruins are now set to face off against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Eastern Conference quarterfinals, which begin Thursday in Boston. The Bruins had a chance to finish in first place in the division -- and the first-round matchup with New Jersey that accompanies it -- but failed to beat the Panthers in Game No. 82 on Sunday night.

Game 1: Thursday, April 12 at 7 p.m. (TD Garden) – NESN, NBCSN
Game 2: Saturday, April 14 at 8 p.m. (TD Garden) – NBC
Game 3: Monday, April 16 at 7 p.m. (Air Canada Centre) – NESN, NBCSN
Game 4: Thursday, April 19 at 7 p.m. (Air Canada Centre) – NESN, NBCSN
Game 5: Saturday April 21 at TBD (TD Garden) – TBD
Game 6: Monday, April 23 at TBD (Air Canada Centre) – TBD
Game 7: Wednesday, April 25 at TBD (TD Garden, Boston) – TBD

The Bruins had their troubles with the Maple Leafs this year, going 1-2-1 against them. Here are some quick facts about both teams, as well as brief recaps of their four meetings this season.

TORONTO LEADING SCORERS
Mitch Marner: 22-47-69
Auston Matthews: 34-29-63
William Nylander: 20-41-61

BOSTON LEADING SCORERS
Brad Marchand: 34-51-85
David Pastrnak: 35-45-80
Patrice Bergeron: 30-33-63

TORONTO ICE TIME LEADERS
Jake Gardiner: 22:32
Nikita Zaitsev: 22:13
Ron Hainsey: 21:52

BOSTON ICE TIME LEADERS
Zdeno Chara: 22:56
Charlie McAvoy: 22:06
Torey Krug: 20:20

TORONTO GOALTENDERS
Frederik Andersen: 38-21-5, .918 S%, 2.81 GAA
Curtis McElhinney: 15-11-5, .934 S%, 2.15 GAA

BOSTON GOALTENDERS
Tuukka Rask: 34-14-5, .917 S%, 2.36 GAA
Anton Khudobin: 16-6-7, .913 S%, 2.56 GAA

First Meeting: Nov. 10, 2017 in Toronto
Maple Leafs 3, Bruins 2 (Overtime)

The Bruins and Leafs exchanged goals in the first, and the Bruins led 2-1 late in the third period. But with the goalie pulled, James van Riemsdyk scored on a redirect in the final minute to force overtime. Patrick Marleau scored in overtime to get Toronto the win. Auston Matthews didn't play in the game.

BOS GOAL SCORERS:
Patrice Bergeron, from Brad Marchand, Torey Krug
David Pastrnak (PP), from Jordan Szwarz, Anders Bjork

TOR GOAL SCORERS:
James van Riemsdyk (PP), from Nazem Kadri, Morgan Rielly
James van Riemsdyk, from Mitch Marner, Nikita Zaitsev
Patrick Marleau, from Jake Gardiner, Mitch Marner

GOALTENDERS:
Anton Khudobin: 30 saves on 33 shots
Frederik Andersen: 33 saves on 35 shots

Second Meeting: Nov. 11, 2017 in Boston
Maple Leafs 4, Bruins 1

The second leg of a home-and-home, the Leafs jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period and never relinquished it. Frank Vatrano scored the lone goal for the home team, and Marleau buried an empty-netter late to accentuate the final score. Backup goaltender Curtis McElhinney stopped 38 of 39 shots, and Auston Matthews again did not play.

TOR GOAL SCORERS:
Mitch Marner, unassisted
James van Riemsdyk (PP), from Nazem Kadri, Morgan Rielly
Morgan Rielly, from James van Riemsdyk, Mitch Marner
Patrick Marleau (EN), from Zach Hyman, Leo Komarov

BOS GOAL SCORERS:
Frank Vatrano, from Torey Krug, Kevan Miller

GOALTENDERS:
Curtis McElhinney: 38 saves on 39 shots
Tuukka Rask: 21 saves on 24 shots

Third meeting: Feb. 3, 2018 in Boston
Bruins 4, Maple Leafs 1

Patrice Bergeron scored early, but Mitch Marner answered to tie the game four minutes later. The Bruins scored two power-play goals in the second period, Tuukka Rask stopped 23 of 24 shots, and Tim Schaller added an empty-net goal to get Boston its lone win against the Leafs.

TOR GOAL SCORERS:
Mitch Marner (PP), from Morgan Rielly, Nazem Kadri

BOS GOAL SCORERS:
Patrice Bergeron, from Danton Heinen
David Pastrnak (PP), from Torey Krug, Danton Heinen
Torey Krug (PP), from Austin Czarnik, David Krejci

GOALTENDERS:
Frederik Andersen: 26 saves on 29 shots
Tuukka Rask: 23 saves on 24 shots

Fourth meeting: Feb. 24, 2018 in Toronto
Maple Leafs 4, Bruins 3

In what was one of the most exciting games of the Bruins' season, it was Ron Hainsey who broke a 3-3 tie with less than 90 seconds remaining in the third to lift the home team to victory. The first period featured two Brad Marchand goals, matched by two Toronto goals. Jake DeBrusk scored in the opening minutes of the second period, while Nazem Kadri scored in the final minute of the second to tie the game.

BOS GOAL SCORERS:
Brad Marchand, from David Pastrnak, Patrice Bergeron
Brad Marchand, from David Pastrnak, Patrice Bergeron
Jake DeBrusk, from Ryan Spooner, David Krejci

TOR GOAL SCORERS:
Mitch Marner, from William Nylander, Roman Polak
Nazem Kadri (PP), from James van Riemsdyk, Mitch Marner
Naem Kadri (PP), from Mitch Marner, Jake Gardiner
Ron Hainsey, from William Nylander, Mitch Marner

GOALTENDERS:
Tuukka Rask: 32 saves on 36 shots
Frederik Andersen: 20 saves on 23 shots

A few things stand out, namely the performance of Mitch Marner. The 20-year-old forward tallied three goals and six assists in the four games, and his nine points against Boston represented his highest total against any team this season. Nazem Kadri (2-3-5) and James van Riemsdyk (3-2-5) proved to be trouble for Boston.

Going the other way, Patrice Bergeron posted 2-2-4 totals, matching David Pastrnak's output, while Brad Marchand tallied 2-1-3 totals in the four games.

Tuukka Rask posted a .905 save percentage and 2.69 GAA against Toronto, while Anton Khudobin stopped 30 of 33 shots (.909/2.95) in his only start. For the Leafs, Frederik Andersen posted a .908 save percentage and a 2.69 GAA, while Curtis McElhinney stopped 38 of 39 shots (.974/1.00) in his lone start.

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