Boston Bruins forward David Pastrnak habitually torments the Toronto Maple Leafs and he may have accidentally added insult to proverbial injury.

Pastrnak scored the series-winning goal against the Maple Leafs in overtime of Game 7, breaking free of Toronto’s defence after the puck caromed awkwardly off the boards and into prime position for Boston’s superstar. The 28-year-old posted four goals and eight points in 13 playoff games before the Bruins were ousted by the eventual Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers in six games.

It was a successful season in Pastrnak’s mind even while playing for a Bruins team that is regularly one of the leading powers in the Atlantic Division. Many expected the Bruins to decline during the 2023-24 season, following Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci’s retirements but it was a rallying point for the team.

“We proved a lot of people wrong, last year we were not even supposed to make the playoffs,” Pastrnak told Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman for 32 Thoughts. “We beat a better team on paper (Toronto).”

It’s a compelling thought and we’re inclined to agree with Pastrnak. Toronto led the NHL in 5-on-5 goals last season with Auston Matthews and William Nylander both submitting the best seasons of their career — which was often rendered moot with Matthews and Nylander fighting through illness and migraines, respectively. Toronto boasted better depth across its forward corps, while Boston countered with superior goaltending and a solid team defence structure. Pastrnak knows what he’s doing here, as he’s all too happy to rile up the Toronto crowd as we witnessed during the 2024 NHL All-Star Game.

Pastrnak has spelled out the problem that Maple Leafs fans know inherently: the current iteration of the Maple Leafs boasts some of the best players on the planet and in theory, they ought to have produced more than one series victory over the better part of a decade. And perhaps this may finally be the year but it’s always going to be an uphill battle. Pastrnak will likely go for another 110-point plus season as the Bruins fend off anticipated decline, the Panthers will remain a tier above the league, while the Maple Leafs could be poised for another dominant regular season and we don’t need to spell out how the postseason often looks.

It’ll be interesting to see how this talking point gets leveraged during what ought to be another heated season between the Original Six rivals.