Tampa Bay Lightning's Jon Cooper is as decorated as they come when it comes to being an NHL head coach with multiple Stanley Cup championships and a couple of Jack Adams trophies too, so when Cooper speaks, it's probably wise to listen to him as he tends to know what he's talking about most of the time.
Recently, Cooper was discussing the Eastern Conference as a whole and mentioned that the Toronto Maple Leafs are poised to go on a run. During the same conversation, he also mentioned how the Eastern Conference is so tight between the aforementioned Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins, Florida Panthers, and Tampa Bay Lightning that one bounce could have an impactful moment within your entire season.
The Bruins and Lightning always seem to be there battling no matter their player personnel circumstances, while the Panthers are the best team in the East for a second year in a row and are on the verge of winning the Stanley Cup depending on how they play against their foe from the Western Conference, who they await at this moment; then their are the Toronto Maple Leafs.
While Cooper is adamant that the Maple Leafs will go on a run and some insiders in the past twelve months have predicted that the team could potentially win a Stanley Cup within the next couple of years strictly based on the core members of the team they currently have and a few up-and-coming prospects, is it just fodder? As a Maple Leafs fan, I hope not, but as a realist, probably.
