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April 12: On this day in 1945, Leaf goaltender Frank McCool became the first goalie in NHL history to record three consecutive shutouts in the Stanley Cup Finals. The three victories were over the Red Wings. The Leafs went on to win the Cup in 7 games. It was also McCool's 4th shutout of the playoff season. As of 2007, he is the only Leaf goaltender to record 4 shutouts in one playoff season. The NHL record is 7 set by Martin Brodeur of the Devils in 2003.
April 12: On this day in 1960, Maurice "Rocket" Richard scored his final career goal in the Finals against Johnny Bower and the Leafs. It was the 82nd playoff goal of his career, a record at the time.
April 12: On this day in 1979, the Leafs set an NHL record that stands to this day for the fastest three goals by one team in a playoff game. Darryl Sittler scored at 4:04 and 4:16 and Ron Ellis added a third goal at 4:27 of the first period against the Atlanta Flames. The total time span was 0:23. No other team has ever come close to this Leafs record in all-time NHL history. Toronto went on to win the best-of-three series 2-0.
April 12: On this day in 1988, Ed Olczyk enjoyed one of his biggest games as a Maple Leaf. Coming off a brutal 8-0 defeat two nights earlier to the Detroit Red Wings in the opening round of the 1988 playoffs, the Leafs bounced back with a 6-5 overtime victory in Game 5 in Detroit. Ed Olczyk scored a hat trick, including the game winner after just :34 of overtime. The Leafs would go on to lose the series two nights later.
April 12: On this day in 1997, the Maple Leafs concluded their 1996-97 season with a 4-1 victory over the Calgary Flames and an overall record of 30-44-8. Felix Potvin was a workhorse for the Leafs over the season, leading the NHL with 74 games and 4,271 minutes played. He also set a league record of 2,214 saves, a mark that stood for seven seasons until he was surpassed by Roberto Luongo in 2004.
