1998–99 Toronto Maple Leafs season

Off-season

The Toronto Maple Leafs moved from the Central Division of the Western Conference to the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference.

Regular season

The 1998–99 season was a tremendous improvement for the Maple Leafs over the 1997–98 season and the team got plenty of help from its new members, including Bryan Berard, Sylvain Cote, Curtis Joseph, Alexander Karpovtsev (who led the NHL in plus-minus with +39, but was not eligible for the NHL Plus-Minus Award because he played just 58 games), Yanic Perreault and Steve Thomas (who finished second on the team in points, with 73). Former Vancouver Canucks head coach Pat Quinn replaced Mike Murphy as Toronto's head coach. Six Maple Leafs scored 20 or more goals. Toronto set a club record for most regular season wins (45) and earned 97 points to finish second in the Northeast Division and fourth in the Eastern Conference. They led the NHL in most goals for, with 268, and were the only team to score 200 or more even-strength goals.

On November 12, 1998, the Maple Leafs defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 10–3 away. Mats Sundin recorded a hat trick in the game, which was the first regular season game in which the Leafs had scored ten goals since February 17, 1989, when they defeated the New York Rangers 10–6 away.

Maple Leaf Gardens

• On February 13, 1999, the Maple Leafs ended a 67-year tradition when they played their last game at Maple Leaf Gardens. The team lost 6–2 to the Chicago Blackhawks. Former Maple Leaf Doug Gilmour scored a fluke goal in that game and notorious tough guy Bob Probert scored the final NHL goal in Gardens history in the game's third period. During the emotional post-game ceremony, legendary Canadian singer Anne Murray performed "The Maple Leaf Forever" while wearing a Toronto jersey. The Leafs were the last of the Original Six teams to leave their Original Six-era arena, three years after the Canadiens did so.

Air Canada Centre

• The first Maple Leafs home game took place on February 20, 1999, against the Montreal Canadiens, won by the Leafs 3–2 on an overtime goal by Steve Thomas.

Season standings

Playoffs

Eastern Conference Finals

The Maple Leafs and Buffalo Sabres met in the Eastern Conference Finals. The Maple Leafs were coming off a six-game series win over the Pittsburgh Penguins, while the Sabres were coming off a six-game series win themselves, over the Boston Bruins. Toronto was having its best playoff since 1994, when they last made a Conference Final series. Buffalo, meanwhile, was in the third round for the second consecutive year. With the series victory, the Sabres advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in 24 years.

Schedule and results

Regular season

|- |1||October 10, 1998||2–1 || align="left"| Detroit Red Wings (1998–99) ||1–0–0 || |- |2||October 13, 1998||3–2 || align="left"| @ Edmonton Oilers (1998–99) ||2–0–0 || |- |3||October 16, 1998||7–3 || align="left"| @ Calgary Flames (1998–99) ||3–0–0 || |- |4||October 17, 1998||1–4 || align="left"| @ Vancouver Canucks (1998–99) ||3–1–0 || |- |5||October 19, 1998||2–2 OT|| align="left"| Nashville Predators (1998–99) ||3–1–1 || |- |6||October 23, 1998||5–3 || align="left"| @ Detroit Red Wings (1998–99) ||4–1–1 || |- |7||October 24, 1998||6–4 || align="left"| @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1998–99) ||5–1–1 || |- |8||October 26, 1998||0–2 || align="left"| Pittsburgh Penguins (1998–99) ||5–2–1 || |- |9||October 30, 1998||1–4 || align="left"| @ Buffalo Sabres (1998–99) ||5–3–1 || |- |10||October 31, 1998||3–6 || align="left"| Buffalo Sabres (1998–99) ||5–4–1 ||

| Legend:

Playoffs

|- | 1 || April 22, 1999 || 0–3 || align="left"| Philadelphia Flyers || Flyers lead 1–0 || |- | 2 || April 24, 1999 || 2–1 || align="left"| Philadelphia Flyers || Series tied 1–1 || |- | 3 || April 26, 1999 || 2–1 || align="left"| @ Philadelphia Flyers || Maple Leafs lead 2–1 || |- | 4 || April 28, 1999 || 2–5 || align="left"| @ Philadelphia Flyers || Series tied 2–2 || |- | 5 || April 30, 1999 || 2–1 OT || align="left"| Philadelphia Flyers || Maple Leafs lead 3–2 || |- | 6 || May 2, 1999 || 1–0 || align="left"| @ Philadelphia Flyers || Maple Leafs win 4–2 ||

| Legend:

Player statistics

Scoring

• Position abbreviations: C = Centre; D = Defence; G = Goaltender; LW = Left wing; RW = Right wing
• • = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Maple Leafs only.*
• • = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Maple Leafs only.*

Goaltending

• • = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Maple Leafs only.*
• • = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Maple Leafs only.*

Awards and records

Awards

Curtis Joseph was a runner-up for the Lester B. Pearson Award and Vezina Trophy and Pat Quinn was a runner-up for the Jack Adams Award.

Milestones

Transactions

The Maple Leafs have been involved in the following transactions during the 1998-99 season.

Trades

Waivers

Expansion draft

Free agents

|}

Draft picks

Toronto's draft picks at the 1998 NHL entry draft held at the Marine Midland Arena in Buffalo, New York.

Notes

References

References

1. "1998-99 NHL Summary {{!".
2. "Toronto Maple Leafs at Chicago Blackhawks Box Score — November 12, 1998 {{!".
3. "Toronto Maple Leafs at New York Rangers Box Score — February 17, 1989 {{!".
4. "1998-99 Toronto Maple Leafs Schedule".
5. National Hockey League Official Guide and Record Book 2006, p. 222, Dan Diamond & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, {{ISBN. 0-920445-98-5.
6. (January 22, 1999). "Lindros Gets All-Star Start - CBS News".
7. "1999 NHL All-Star Game Rosters".
8. (October 26, 1998). "Sundin Named Player of the Week".
9. (April 5, 1999). "Berezin Named Player of the Week".
10. Toronto Maple Leafs 2015–16 Media Guide, p.373
11. "1998-99 NHL Debuts".
12. (May 11, 1999). "Pens Rally Past Leafs In OT".
13. "1998 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com".