Jamie Nye: Another low point for the Toronto Maple Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs have found a new low. This is the lowest of the low over the past two or three generations of Leafs teams.

It may sound silly because they blew a 4-1 lead in a Game 7 in 2013, but that was a series where they were the underdogs and had no business being in a Game 7.

But this year, this was supposed to be their opportunity to win it all, or at least get to the final four. They were the favourite in the North Division and finally got to avoid powerhouses like Boston and Tampa in their division — and they proved they were worthy of the praise in the regular season.

That’s why this complete unravelling against Montreal should be considered the worst playoff letdown since the ’60s for the Leafs.

The expectations were sky high and they actually deserved the expectations. But for the Leafs to find the next level, they need a better return on investment with more than $20 million in salary for Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. They combined for one goal in a seven-game series.

And for the 54th straight year for Leaf fans, it’s “Maybe next year.”