Toronto Maple Leafs fans will not have post-season hockey to look forward to this yearMark Blinch/The Globe and Mail
Brace yourself.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are not going to make the playoffs.
With the Boston Bruins gaining a single point on Tuesday night, they moved to 83 points, one more than the Leafs can get to if they win their remaining 11 games.
With eight teams in the East now at 83 points or more, Toronto's chances at playing beyond April 12 are officially over.
Realistically, they have been for a while. The Leafs collapse has been so pronounced and so thorough this season that they've won only eight of their last 40 games, which includes winning three of 27 road games in that span.
According to sportsclubstats.com, the Leafs chances of making the playoffs dipped below 1 per cent when they lost in Philadelphia almost seven weeks ago.
It's beyond ugly, but it means they'll finish between fourth and sixth last in the NHL standings and have very good positioning for the lottery draft come next month. The Leafs are also expected to have between a 7.5– and 9.5-per-cent chance of winning the lottery and being able to draft Connor McDavid.
There's your silver lining to what will go down as one of the franchise's worst seasons ever.