Four Canadian teams on the ice in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, while double-digit Canadians playing in the NBA post-season. Pictured: Toronto Maple Leafs Captain John Tavares. Photo Credit: Toronto Maple Leafs/X.
It’s a good time to be a sports fan.
And perhaps a nerve-wracking, anxious, time if you’re a Toronto Maple Leafs fan.
If hockey’s not your thing, the National Basketball Association post-season is underway as well.
We’ll concentrate on the four Canadian teams competing for Lord Stanley’s mug to start things off.
The Toronto Maple Leafs, Edmonton Oilers, Vancouver Canucks and Winnipeg Jets are the four clubs from this side of the border partaking in their respective playoff series.
First to Toronto who is playing fellow original six foe in Boston, and recent history is certainly not on the side of the Maple Leafs.
The two franchises have met sixteen times over the past 106 seasons, and things are tied 8-8, but the Leafs haven’t beaten the Bruins in a playoff series since 1959.
To Edmonton now, where they’ll be no surprises between the Oilers and Kings as the two Pacific Division rivals have gone toe-to-toe in the 2022 and 2023 playoffs.
Of their previous 13 meetings in the last two playoffs, nine games have been decided by two goals or less, while four have needed overtime to decide a winner.
As for Vancouver and Nashville, playoff experience could come into play.
The Predators, the first wild card from the NHL Western Conference, had 817 career playoff games among players on its roster, while the Canucks, who won the Pacific Division for the first time since 2013, had a combined 468 playoff games.
Winnipeg and Colorado are meeting for the first time ever in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
The Jets feature one of the top goaltenders in the league in Connor Hellebuyck, who led the NHL this past regular season in save-percentage at .921, while the Avalanche were the league top ranked offence scoring 3.68 goals per game.
As most know by now Canada’s only NBA team, the Toronto Raptors, failed to qualify for the playoffs, but that doesn’t mean a number of Canadian players aren’t participating in the postseason.
Look no further than NBA most-valuable player finalist Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder. The man they call ‘SGA’ averaged 30.1 points per game this past regular season and will be featured prominently in the Thunder’s first round matchup against the New Orleans Pelicans
Lu Dort also plays for Oklahoma City.
The defending NBA Champion Denver Nuggets feature guard Jamal Murray. Murray and the Nuggets are playing Lebron James and the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the playoffs.
Nickeil Alexander-Walker’s Minnesota Timberwolves are taking on the Phoenix Suns to open both teams postseason.
The first place overall Boston Celtics have one Canadian on their roster in Oshae Brissett. The Celtics are playing the Miami Heat to open their playoff run.
Three Canadians are featured in the Dallas Mavericks/LA Clippers series. Dwight Powell and Olivier-Maxence Prosper for the Mavericks, Joshua Primo for the Clippers.
It’s long-time NBAer Tristan Thompson in the lineup for the Cleveland Cavaliers against the Orlando Magic.
And finally, a pair of Canadians hoop it up for the Indiana Pacers in Andrew Nembhard and Bennedict Mathurin. The Pacers are playing the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round of the NBA post-season.
Both the NHL and NBA Championship trophies will be awarded in June.
Rod Mawhood is a lifelong Niagara native who has had the pleasure of working in all three mediums – Radio, Print and TV – for over 20 years. His first announcing gig was with the then St. Catharines Stompers. Since then he’s worked in radio and TV in Toronto, and currently is the announcer for the Niagara IceDogs and Niagara River Lions.
Rod also covers the Buffalo Bills for FOX Sports and the Buffalo Sabres for NBC Sports.
