It&#8217;s been a long time coming, but we are finally at the point where the Maple Leafs can begin righting the wrongs of last season. Sheldon Keefe let it slip in his media availability following the Leafs clinching second place in the Atlantic that Toronto would indeed be playing on Monday night to kick start the 2022 playoffs, but we now have the full first round calendar against the Lightning, including that all important Game seven at home.
Monday, May 2: Lightning at Maple Leafs, 7:30 p.m. ET (Sportsnet, CBC, TVA Sports, ESPN2)
Wednesday, May 4: Lightning at Maple Leafs, 7:30 p.m. ET (Sportsnet, CBC, TVA Sports, ESPN2)
Friday, May 6: Maple Leafs at Lightning, 7:30 p.m. ET (TBS, Sportsnet, CBC, TVA Sports)
Sunday, May 8: Maple Leafs at Lightning, 7 p.m. ET (TBS, Sportsnet, CBC, TVA Sports)
*Tuesday, May 10: Lightning at Maple Leafs, TBD
*Thursday, May 12: Maple Leafs at Lightning, TBD
*Saturday, May 14: Lightning at Maple Leafs, TBD
Here&#8217;s a look at what the Leafs are getting themselves into with the Lightning:
<blockquote class="wp-embedded-content" data-secret="sk12MTEgcd"><a href="https://theleafsnation.com/2022/04/21/lightning-has-struck-twice-thats-more-than-enough/">Lightning has struck twice. That&#8217;s more than enough</a></blockquote>
<iframe loading="lazy" class="wp-embedded-content" sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" style="position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);" title="&#8220;Lightning has struck twice. That&#8217;s more than enough&#8221; &#8212; TheLeafsNation" src="https://theleafsnation.com/2022/04/21/lightning-has-struck-twice-thats-more-than-enough/embed/#?secret=sk12MTEgcd" data-secret="sk12MTEgcd" width="600" height="338" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no"></iframe>
Interestingly enough the Leafs manage to go the entire round without either a back to back or a two day off section in the schedule. There wasn&#8217;t any attempt to force a Saturday night game for the Leafs in the first four games, and the NHL left the possibility of a Saturday night game until game seven.
You&#8217;ll probably notice the slightly later start time for some of those games, that appears to be an attempt to stagger start times in the first round between other series going on. Boston and Carolina are the 7pm start time games. The downside is the later start for the Leafs, the upside is there will probably be hockey you can watch instead of intermission panels in the first round.
So now we play the waiting game and enjoy one last weekend with our families before the all consuming NHL playoffs begin.
More from <a href="http://theleafsnation.com">The Leafs Nation:</a>
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<li><a href="https://theleafsnation.com/2022/04/25/leafs-prospect-roundup-marlies-final-stretch-ohl-and-growlers-playoffs/" rel="follow" data-wpel-link="internal">Leafs Prospect Roundup: Marlies final stretch, OHL and Growlers playoffs</a> by Kyle Cushman</li>
<li><a href="https://theleafsnation.com/2022/04/26/auston-matthews-scores-60th-goal-as-maple-leafs-teammates-make-the-case-for-him-to-win-mvp/" rel="follow" data-wpel-link="internal">Auston Matthews scores 60th goal as Maple Leafs teammates make the case for him to win MVP</a> by David Alter</li>
<li><a href="https://theleafsnation.com/2022/04/26/how-the-maple-leafs-can-change-the-outcome-after-an-early-playoff-exit-last-season/" rel="follow" data-wpel-link="internal">How the Maple Leafs can change the outcome after an early playoff exit last season</a> by Nick Barden</li>
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It's been a long time coming, but we are finally at the point where the Maple Leafs can begin righting the wrongs of last season. Sheldon Keefe let it slip in his media availability following the Leafs clinching second place in the Atlantic that Toronto would indeed be playing on Monday night to kick start the 2022 playoffs, but we now have the full first round calendar against the Lightning, including that all important Game seven at home.

Monday, May 2: Lightning at Maple Leafs, 7:30 p.m. ET (Sportsnet, CBC, TVA Sports, ESPN2)

Wednesday, May 4: Lightning at Maple Leafs, 7:30 p.m. ET (Sportsnet, CBC, TVA Sports, ESPN2)

Friday, May 6: Maple Leafs at Lightning, 7:30 p.m. ET (TBS, Sportsnet, CBC, TVA Sports)

Sunday, May 8: Maple Leafs at Lightning, 7 p.m. ET (TBS, Sportsnet, CBC, TVA Sports)

*Tuesday, May 10: Lightning at Maple Leafs, TBD

*Thursday, May 12: Maple Leafs at Lightning, TBD

*Saturday, May 14: Lightning at Maple Leafs, TBD

Here's a look at what the Leafs are getting themselves into with the Lightning:

https://theleafsnation.com/2022/04/21/lightning-has-struck-twice-thats-more-than-enough/

Interestingly enough the Leafs manage to go the entire round without either a back to back or a two day off section in the schedule. There wasn't any attempt to force a Saturday night game for the Leafs in the first four games, and the NHL left the possibility of a Saturday night game until game seven.

You'll probably notice the slightly later start time for some of those games, that appears to be an attempt to stagger start times in the first round between other series going on. Boston and Carolina are the 7pm start time games. The downside is the later start for the Leafs, the upside is there will probably be hockey you can watch instead of intermission panels in the first round.

So now we play the waiting game and enjoy one last weekend with our families before the all consuming NHL playoffs begin.

More from <a href="http://theleafsnation.com">The Leafs Nation:</a>
<ul>
 	<li><a href="https://theleafsnation.com/2022/04/25/leafs-prospect-roundup-marlies-final-stretch-ohl-and-growlers-playoffs/" rel="follow" data-wpel-link="internal">Leafs Prospect Roundup: Marlies final stretch, OHL and Growlers playoffs</a> by Kyle Cushman</li>
 	<li><a href="https://theleafsnation.com/2022/04/26/auston-matthews-scores-60th-goal-as-maple-leafs-teammates-make-the-case-for-him-to-win-mvp/" rel="follow" data-wpel-link="internal">Auston Matthews scores 60th goal as Maple Leafs teammates make the case for him to win MVP</a> by David Alter</li>
 	<li><a href="https://theleafsnation.com/2022/04/26/how-the-maple-leafs-can-change-the-outcome-after-an-early-playoff-exit-last-season/" rel="follow" data-wpel-link="internal">How the Maple Leafs can change the outcome after an early playoff exit last season</a> by Nick Barden</li>
</ul>
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