The Toronto Maple Leafs kept their playoff hopes alive with a 2-0 shutout win against the Florida Panthers in Game 6, leaving the second-round series tied at 3-3. All eyes are now on Game 7 on Sunday, May 18. It will be a crucial night for the Maple Leafs, who are looking to advance past Round 2 in the postseason for the first time since 2002.
Victory on Sunday will also keep the dreams of almost every Toronto fan alive — to see their team lift the Stanley Cup once more.
The Last Time the Toronto Maple Leafs Won the Stanley Cup
The Maple Leafs’ trophy drought is an NHL record; they last lifted the Stanley Cup in 1967 and have not made it to the Stanley Cup Finals since then. Their gap has lasted 56 seasons.
To put it in perspective; the Maple Leafs have gone longer without a Stanley Cup than the Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks have been in existence. Both franchises played their 54th NHL season and have never won a playoff championship.
The Maple Leafs won the Stanley Cup 13 times between 1918 and 1967. Their most dominant period was between 1940 and 1952, when the franchise won seven championships in 12 seasons. They also won the trophy three times in a row in 1962, ’63, and ’64 before their final 1967 triumph.
After their strong end to the regular season and Atlantic Division title, hockey analysts speculated that this might be Toronto’s year, and fans were cautiously optimistic. Veteran hockey reporter Stan Fischler, “The Hockey Maven” wrote a special column about the Maple Leafs’ chances this season in April 2025.
“The Maple Leafs clinched the Atlantic Division and have a good chance at their first Stanley Cup championship in 58 years,” Fischler wrote via NHL.com.
Maple Leafs Have Had a Topsy-Turvy Postseason
Toronto started the postseason brightly, racing to a 3-0 lead against the Ottawa Senators in Round 1 before dropping two games, which highlighted the franchise’s abysmal elimination game record; since 2020, the Maple Leafs have only won three games out of 16 where playoff elimination was possible.
They rallied to clinch the series in six games and won the first two games against the Panthers in Round 2 before a run of three straight defeats saw them staring yet another elimination in the face, down 3-2.
In the must-win game on Friday, May 16, Toronto dug deep and ground out a 2-0 shutout win to take the series to Game 7. Toronto has a 12-15 record in Game 7s in the playoffs, going 7-3 at home. They have lost their last six Game 7s, which have all come in the first round before now. The last time they clinched a series in seven games was against the Ottawa Senators in 2004.
