We know when the Battle of Ontario is now set to start, and fans it’s time to circle your calendars for an Easter Sunday clash.
The Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators are set to do battle in Round One of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, harkening back to the early 2000s and bringing a fresh face to the first round after years of the same old.
So with anticipation growing, when do we actually get to see these teams square off?
That’s right folks, Easter Sunday is when the first game of the playoffs is set to start. It’s quite the perfect time as fans will be stocked up on Easter candy and dinner, able to settle in for a night of intense hockey.
It’s going to be a wild night of hockey that’s for sure, and with the controversy already surrounding the ticket prices and availability heading into the series, it’s going to make an even intense series that more heated.
We are also expected to see Brady Tkachuk return to action as well as several other Senators players who were resting in order to prepare to face the Leafs.
On the opposite end, the Maple Leafs are still without three of their key players and with only three days until the team takes the ice and no definitive timeline yet for their return, things could be a bit bumpy for the Maple Leafs at least at the start.
It’s assumed that the rest of the schedule will then be played on alternating days, with Game Two on Tuesday, then Game Three on Thursday, and so on and so forth.
The projected starters look to be Anthony Stolarz for the Maple Leafs, who is riding a very hot hand heading into his first career playoff start, and Linus Ullmark will be starting for the Senators in his first year with the club.
There is still some hockey left to be played as Toronto takes on Detroit on Thursday night and the Senators finish off their season against Carolina. The NHL season officially ends on Thursday, and with both teams set in stone when it comes to the first round matchup, all we can do is wait.
Scotiabank Arena is going to be in a frenzied state on Sunday evening, and with the Maple Leafs looking to make a statement, expect a whole lot of eyes to be glued to the screen.
Get ready folks, the fun is about to begin.