The Toronto Maple Leafs officially brought a disappointing season to a close on Wednesday night with a 3-1 loss to the Ottawa Senators. While the Battle of Ontario finale usually brings a certain level of intensity, this one felt more like two teams heading in completely different directions. Ottawa rested six regulars ahead of their first-round series against the Carolina Hurricanes, while the Maple Leafs were just trying to get through the final game of a season that really fell apart after the Olympic break.
Here are the key takeaways from the final game of the season.
Maple Leafs Lock up 5th Worst Place
The one silver lining from this 3-1 loss is that it locks the Maple Leafs into a bottom-five finish in the NHL standings. By finishing 28th, the organization has done everything it can to protect its 2026 first-round pick.
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As a reminder, the pick sent to the Boston Bruins in the Brandon Carlo trade is top-five protected. By losing seven straight to end the season, the Maple Leafs have given themselves the best possible odds in the lottery. If they land a top-five pick, they keep it, and the pick owed to Boston shifts to 2027. In a season that has been summed up as disappointment and failure, making sure a high-end prospect is added this summer is about the best outcome the front office could ask for.
Nylander Hits a Milestone
In a game where there wasn’t much going offensively, William Nylander still found a way to give the Maple Leafs something. His third-period backhand goal was his 30th of the season, marking the sixth time in his career, and fifth straight year, that he has hit that number.
Nylander now joins a short list of names in franchise history, including Mats Sundin and Auston Matthews, as the only players to record at least six 30-goal seasons. Even with everything else that went wrong this year, his consistency is one of the few things this team can still count on.
What’s Next for the Maple Leafs
The season is finally over. The Maple Leafs finish with a 32-36-14 record, missing the playoffs for the first time since 2016.
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Now the focus shifts to the draft lottery and what feels like an inevitable roster shakeup. There are key players heading toward free agency, and the front office has some real pressure to fix the defensive side of things. It should be a busy offseason. For fans, it probably comes down to one thing now, hoping the lottery balls fall their way and that a 28th-place finish turns into something that actually changes the direction of the team.
