After a 17-year drought, the Toronto Maple Leafs have finally won a playoff series in the NHL. The last time they achieved this feat was way back in 2004, when George W. Bush was the US President, Lance Armstrong was still winning Tour de France titles, and Facebook had just been launched.
The Leafs secured their spot in the second round of the playoffs after defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 in overtime in Game 6 in Florida. The victory was a long-awaited relief for the team and their fans, who have endured six straight first-round series losses, in addition to a qualifying-round loss in the NHL bubble in 2020.
Auston Matthews got the scoring started for the Leafs in the second period, with Steven Stamkos netting the game-tying goal for the Lightning in the third period to eventually send it to overtime. However, it was John Tavares who scored the series-clinching goal just under five minutes into the overtime period, sending the Leafs into the next round.
While the win over Tampa Bay is a significant achievement, the Maple Leafs still have a lot of work to do if they are to progress further in the playoffs. As Auston Matthews said after the game, "this one obviously feels really great, but we still got plenty of work to do."
The Maple Leafs now await the winner of Game 7 between the Boston Bruins and Florida Panthers, with the next round of the playoffs set to begin soon. For Leafs fans, this long-awaited victory has been a long time coming, and they will be hoping that their team can continue their winning ways and make a deep run in the playoffs.