'Obviously it's going to be a real challenge': Toronto Maple Leafs prepare for Boston Bruins

The Toronto Maple Leafs will face the Boston Bruins in the first round of the playoffs for the fourth time in the last 11 years this season.

The Bruins, who enjoy home-ice advantage, have led in each of the previous four meetings and are 4-0 against the Maple Leafs this season.

“Obviously, it's going to be a real challenge, but it's going to be special as an 'Original Six,' and it has a real history,” Leafs captain John Tavares said after tipoff on Tuesday. “It's a great opportunity for us. It's a test and we have to prepare.”

Boston missed two opportunities to claim first place in the Atlantic Division this week, ending the season with 2-0 losses to the Washington Capitals on Monday and 3-1 to the Ottawa Senators on Tuesday. The Florida Panthers took advantage of Boston's short skid to secure first place with a 5-2 victory over the Maple Leafs on Tuesday. The Panthers will face in-state rival Tampa Bay Lightning in the first round.

Despite ending their season with three losses in four games, Bruins captain Brad Marchand said he believes the team will find a new tool in the postseason.

“Regardless of how it goes and how we play at any stage, when it comes time for the playoffs, there's a lot of excitement and adrenaline,” Marchand said. “The guys made such a call, it would have been nice if we played better tonight, but at the end of the day, we've got a week to prepare and we're excited to go.”

The Maple Leafs close out the season on Wednesday against the Thunder, and it's unclear if star center Auston Matthews will play for his 70th goal of the season. With winger Bobby McMann ruled out and forward Max Domi likely out as well, the Maple Leafs are getting less depth.

“We're going to talk about it,” head coach Sheldon Keefe said of the rested players Tuesday. “We have 12 healthy forwards.”

The Maple Leafs are winless in their last three games after a hot stretch that saw the team win six of seven games. Toronto went 0-2-2 against the Bruins this season, sweeping their first two meetings last year before losing to the Bruins twice in three days in early March, 4-1.

“No matter who we play, it's going to be competitive and we're excited about it,” Leafs forward Mitch Marner said. “We have one more game. We need to get ready by cleaning up some things and then we'll focus.”

Both teams face the decision to take their Game 1 starter at goalie, and the Bruins are left to weigh whether to keep the rotation in place. Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark have traded starts all season long, with both missing more than one game since early March. There was little to separate the two, with Swain finishing the season with a 25-10-8 record with a .916 save percentage and 2.53 goals against against Ullmark's 22-10-7 record with a .915 and 2.58 goals against. GAA.

Ilya Samsonov, who was waived earlier this season, will once again be Toronto's playoff starter after seeing most of the starting spots. The 27-year-old has a 23-7-8 record this season, an .890 save percentage and a 3.13 goals-against average. Leafs netminder Joseph Wall, who was sidelined for more than two months in December with a foot injury, dropped his record to 12-11-1 with a .907 save percentage in Tuesday's loss to the Panthers. 2.94 GAA. The Maple Leafs roster includes veteran Martin Jones, who has an 11-7-1 record with a .908 save percentage and 2.70 GAA, but has started just one game since March 1.

“They've been playing for the playoffs all year,” Wall said of the Bruins on Tuesday. “They're a tough team to play against and they have big bodies … Florida might be a little different.”

While the Bruins have been on the side of the playoffs in recent history, the Maple Leafs advanced to the second round last season for the first time since 2004, and the Bruins were eliminated in the first round after winning the Presidents Trophy in the regular season. .

The Maple Leafs and Bruins last met in the first round of the 2019 playoffs, when Boston took the series in Game 7 for the second year in a row. Only five members of the current Maple Leafs have been in Matthews, Marner, Tavares, William Nylander and Morgan Rielly. Six players remain with the Bruins from their 2019 run that ended in a 7-game Stanley Cup Final loss to the St. Louis Blues.