Toronto Maple Leafs Quarter-Century Teams unveiled

Now that 2025 is here, the NHL is celebrating the past 25 years by revealing Quarter-Century Teams for each of the League's 32 franchises and the Arizona Coyotes.

Each club will be represented by a First Team and Second Team of six players -- three forwards, two defensemen and one goalie -- who played for the franchise after Jan. 1, 2000. The first and second teams were selected by broadcasters, national writers and local writers and NHL.com writers who have covered the respective teams, in addition to select former players.

The six players voted to each First Team will be on the ballot for the NHL All Quarter-Century Team that will be chosen via a fan vote that will start in February.

We continue today by revealing the First and Second Quarter-Century Teams for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Players are listed in alphabetical order:

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS QUARTER-CENTURY TEAMS

First Team

Forwards

Mitch Marner

Auston Matthews

Mats Sundin

Defensemen

Tomas Kaberle

Morgan Rielly

Goalie

Ed Belfour

Forwards: Matthews already has put his fingerprints on the history of the Maple Leafs with a cache of awards that include the 2017 Calder Trophy voted as NHL rookie of the year, the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy as the League's top goal-scorer in 2021 (41), 2022 (60) and 2024 (69), and the 2022 Hart Trophy given to the NHL Most Valuable Player, becoming the first Maple Leafs player to win it in 67 years. He's scored 379 goals and needs 11 more to pass Darryl Sittler for second in team history behind Sundin (420), the 2012 Hockey Hall of Fame inductee who captained the Maple Leafs to four Stanley Cup Playoff series victories from 2000-04. Sundin played for Toronto from 1994-95 to 2007-08, and in the quarter century had 575 points (244 goals, 331 assists). Marner grew up in the Toronto area dreaming of playing for the Maple Leafs and has translated that into being the franchise's leading scorer since Jan. 1, 2000 (690 points (207 goals, 483 assists).

Defensemen: Kaberle arguably was one of the best rag-to-riches stories in franchise history, going from an eighth-round pick (No. 204) in the 1996 NHL Draft to Toronto's second all-time leading scorer among defensemen (520 points; 83 goals, 437 assists), trailing only Hall of Famer Borje Salming's 768 (148 goals, 620 assists). When it comes to the quarter century, it's Rielly who has the most points at his position (490; 84 goals, 406 assists) ahead of Kaberle (476; 74 goals, 402 assists). Rielly (829) and Kaberle (731) have played more games than anyone for the Maple Leafs since Jan. 1, 2000.

Goalie: Belfour's stint with the Maple Leafs was impactful even though it lasted just three seasons (2002-03 to 2005-06). He had 17 shutouts, most of any Toronto goalie in the quarter century. He's also second in wins since 2000 with 93, trailing only Frederik Andersen (149), who played 98 more games.

Second Team

Forwards

Phil Kessel

William Nylander

John Tavares

Defensemen

Bryan McCabe

Dion Phaneuf

Goalie

Curtis Joseph

Forwards: It speaks to the quality of Toronto's forwards in the past quarter century that a first team-worthy talent like Nylander is on the second team. Only Marner, Matthews (672) and Sundin have more points in a Maple Leafs jersey since Jan. 1, 2000, than Nylander's 571 (240 goals, 331 assists). Kessel's six-year run with Toronto from 2009-15 was highlighted by his consistency. He scored at least 20 goals in every season and at least 30 four times en route to 394 points (181 goals, 213 assists). Tavares signed a seven-year, $77 million contract with the Maple Leafs on July 1, 2018, after playing his entire NHL career for the New York Islanders. He's embraced playing for the team he grew up cheering for, scoring the fifth-most goals (203) of any Maple Leafs player in the quarter century.

Defensemen: McCabe and Phaneuf each blended hustle and muscle into their games, making them difficult to play against at both ends of the ice. Only Rielly has more goals among Maple Leafs defensemen since 2000 than McCabe (83), who added 214 assists for 297 points. His plus-63 rating is second-best of any Toronto defenseman in that span, trailing only TJ Brodie's plus-70. Phaneuf was named the 18th captain of the Maple Leafs on June 14, 2010, succeeding Sundin, and served in that role until he was traded to the Ottawa Senators on Feb. 9, 2016. His 45 goals with Toronto are tied with Jake Gardiner for fourth most by a Maple Leafs defenseman in the quarter century.

Goalie: Joseph played only two seasons with the Maple Leafs in the quarter century before leaving as a free agent in 2002 but won 84 games and 11 had shutouts. He's also the runaway leader in Stanley Cup Playoff wins since 2000 with 23, 13 more than Andersen.