These Two NHL Rivals Have An Interesting Playoff Stat

As the NHL Playoffs march on towards the Stanley Cup Finals and the official end of the season, plenty of NHL fans are still cheering for their favorite teams. Unfortunately, hockey fans in Buffalo and Toronto are not among the throngs of people who are hoping that Lord Stanley's Cup will call our great cities home this year.

With the Sabres and Toronto both now home to watch the rest of the playoffs, NHL fans and pundits all over North America are dissecting what is wrong with the two franchises and why they have not been able to convert their multi-million dollar team payrolls into Stanley Cup Championships.

While the issues in Buffalo are glaring and the team has been shut out of the playoffs for several years, you would think that Toronto currently has the NHL's longest active playoff appearance streak. However, this is not as impressive as you may think if you dig into the statistics.

The Sabres & Maple Leafs Have Combined For An Odd Playoff Stat

The Toronto Maple Leafs, an active Hockey club since 1917, have made the NHL Playoffs every season since 2017. The Buffalo Sabres, on the other hand, have been in the NHL since 1970 and have not made the playoffs for a record 14 seasons. The 2010-11 NHL Season was the last year Buffalo earned a playoff appearance.

Given these facts, you would think that Toronto would be so far ahead of the Sabres that these teams would have no comparable stats. That is, until NHL pundit Mike Bundt pointed out something that has blown the minds of hockey fans around the world.

Over the last twenty years, since the NHL canceled the season due to a lockout, the two teams have combined for a total of 14 playoff appearances, 4 for the Sabres and 10 for the Leafs; guess which team has the most playoff series wins in these twenty years?

The Buffalo Sabres.

Who knew...