2024–25 Toronto Maple Leafs season

The 2024–25 Toronto Maple Leafs season was the franchise's 108th season (107th season of play) in the National Hockey League (NHL).^[2]

Craig Berube was hired as head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs on May 17, 2024, replacing Sheldon Keefe after their first-round exit in the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs.^[3]

On April 2, the ECHL announced that they had terminated the membership of the Leafs' affiliate, the Newfoundland Growlers, in the ECHL. The Growlers were experiencing financial difficulties and failure to fulfill financial obligations under ECHL Bylaws.^[4] The Leafs announced on July 3 that the Cincinnati Cyclones would be their new ECHL affiliate, effective immediately.^[5]

On August 14, Auston Matthews was named the 26th captain in Maple Leafs history replacing John Tavares who held the position since the 2019–20 season.^[6]

On April 2, 2025, the Maple Leafs clinched a playoff berth for the ninth consecutive season, after a win over the Florida Panthers. They held the longest active playoff appearance streak at the time, making the playoffs every year since 2017 after the Boston Bruins (previously tied with them for the streak) failed to qualify for the 2025 playoffs.^[7][8] Later, on April 15, 2025, the Maple Leafs clinched the Atlantic Division championship with a 4–0 win over the Buffalo Sabres. This marked the first time that the team won the Atlantic Division since the league realigned prior to the 2013–14 season, their first division championship since winning the temporary North Division during the pandemic shortened 2021 season, and their first standard 82-game regular season division championship since the 2000 season. This season also saw the Leafs record only 4 overtime losses, which is the fewest total since 2004 and the lowest in the salary cap era.^[9]

In the first round of the playoffs, the Maple Leafs played the Ottawa Senators for the first time since 2004, reviving the fierce Battle of Ontario rivalry fought over four series in the early 2000s. The Maple Leafs won all four series; however, Ottawa won all three of its games and swept the season series against Toronto this regular season. The Leafs defeated the Senators in six games, advancing to the second round where they lost to the eventual Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers in seven games, marking the seventh consecutive game seven loss for the Maple Leafs. This extended the team's record-breaking Stanley Cup drought to 57 seasons (58 years).

In the process, the Leafs lost a playoff series to an eventual Stanley Cup champion for the first time since 2000 when they lost to the New Jersey Devils. Their streak of 23 seasons (not counting the 2004–05 lockout) without losing to an eventual champion was the longest in NHL history.^{[citation needed]}

This series made franchise history for both teams:^[10][11]

• Maple Leafs – first series defeat in a best-of-seven series after having taken a 2–0 lead at home in franchise history, and fourth time overall; the previous three times they blew such a lead, they started on the road. They are now 16–4 in series where they led 2–0, and 11–1 in series where they held such a lead and started at home. The previous three times the Leafs blew a 2–0 series lead before this were:
  • 1995, against the Chicago Blackhawks in seven games in the conference quarterfinals.^[12]
  • 1987, against the Detroit Red Wings in seven games in the conference semifinals (this was also a 3–1 comeback).^[13]
  • 1977, against the Philadelphia Flyers in six games in the conference semifinals.^[14]
• Panthers: overcame a 2–0 series deficit in a best-of-seven series for the first time in franchise history. They are now 1–5 in series where they trailed 2–0.

This series was known for two incidents; one in game 5 where jerseys were thrown on the ice at Scotiabank Arena when the Leafs lost 6–1, and then another in game 7 where not only jerseys were thrown onto the ice, but bottles of beer were also thrown.^[15][16]