The Toronto Maple Leafs clinched a berth in the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Friday.
The Maple Leafs (43-23-9), who were off Friday, qualified for the eighth straight season when the Washington Capitals lost to the Carolina Hurricanes and the Detroit Red Wings lost to the New York Rangers.
Toronto next plays at the Montreal Canadiens on Saturday (7 p.m. ET; CBC, TVAS, SN). The Maple Leafs are third in the Atlantic Division, two points ahead of the Tampa Bay Lightning, who also clinched Friday, and six points behind the second-place Florida Panthers.
The Maple Leafs have won 21 of 31 games (21-9-1) since Jan. 21 after winning half of their first 44 games (22-14-8).
"Last night was the night that we clinched a playoff spot so it's a good feeling, and the last seven games, we'll use that to get ready to go knowing that we're going to be there and clean up some things, work on some details," Maple Leafs forward Max Domi said Saturday. "And when it comes to playoff hockey, you need everyone, not just three lines; you need four lines, you need six defensemen, two goalies, and you need some extras as well that are going to jump in. So I think we're just gearing towards that and looking forward to the challenge."
Auston Matthews leads the NHL with 63 goals and leads Toronto with 99 points.
William Nylander is second on the Maple Leafs with an NHL career-high 95 points (40 goals, 55 assists) and is one goal from a career high. Mitch Marner is third with 76 points (25 goals, 51 assists).
Morgan Rielly leads Toronto defensemen with 52 points (seven goals, 45 assists) in 66 games.
Ilya Samsonov is 16-3-1 with a 2.48 goals-against average and .913 save percentage in 20 games since Jan. 21. He was 5-3-6 with a 3.88 GAA and .863 save percentage in his first 16 games this season.
Martin Jones is 11-7-1 with a 2.70 GAA and .908 save percentage in 21 games (18 starts), and Joseph Woll is 11-10-1 with a 2.92 GAA and .907 save percentage in 23 games (21 starts).
Toronto won a round in the playoffs last season for the first time since 2004 before losing to Florida in the Eastern Conference Second Round in five games.
The Maple Leafs made the playoffs once from 2006-16 and haven't won the Stanley Cup since 1967, the longest drought in the NHL.
NHL.com independent correspondent Sean Farrell contributed to this report
