When Mike Babcock – who was supposed to be the coach when the Toronto Maple Leafs finally won the Stanley Cup – was fired, I thought it would be for sure the strangest thing to happen this season.
But then the news about Babcock psychologically abusing players came out, the Leafs lost to an emergency goalie, and the season went on a two-and-a-half month hiatus (so far).
All that is crazy, but the weirdest thing about the Toronto Maple Leafs season might actually be how good they are, and how little respect they get.
The Leafs are not seen as contenders by the majority of NHL analytics or fans.