# 1977–78 Toronto Maple Leafs season

The 1977–78 Toronto Maple Leafs season was the 61st season of the franchise, 51st as the Maple Leafs. The Leafs made the playoffs and won two series before losing the semi-finals to the Montreal Canadiens.

## Offseason
### NHL Draft

| Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/junior/club team |
| 1 | 11 | John Anderson (LW) | Canada | Toronto Marlboros (OHA) |
| 1 | 12 | Trevor Johansen (D) | Canada | Toronto Marlboros (OHA) |
| 2 | 24 | Bob Gladney (D) | Canada | Oshawa Generals (OHA) |
| 2 | 29 | Rocky Saganiuk (RW) | Canada | Lethbridge Broncos (WCHL) |
| 4 | 65 | Dan Eastman (RW) | Canada | London Knights (OMJHL) |
| 5 | 83 | John Wilson (LW) | Canada | Windsor Spitfires (OMJHL) |
| 6 | 101 | Roy Sommer (LW) | United States | Calgary Wranglers (WCHL) |
| 7 | 119 | Lynn Jorgenson (LW) | Canada | Toronto Marlboros (OMJHL) |
| 8 | 134 | Kevin Howe (D) | Canada | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OMJHL) |
| 9 | 149 | Ray Robertson (D) | Canada | St. Lawrence University (ECAC) |

## Regular season

Darryl Sittler ranked third in the NHL in scoring with 117 points.

### Final standings

Adams Division :
| | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| Boston Bruins | 80 | 51 | 18 | 11 | 333 | 218 | 113 |
| Buffalo Sabres | 80 | 44 | 19 | 17 | 288 | 215 | 105 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | 80 | 41 | 29 | 10 | 271 | 237 | 92 |
| Cleveland Barons | 80 | 22 | 45 | 13 | 230 | 325 | 57 |

### Record vs. opponents

Adams Division record vs. opponents :
Vs. Wales Conference
Vs. Campbell Conference
Vs. Adams Division
1977–78 NHL records
Team
BOS
BUF
CLE
TOR
Total
Boston
—2–43–1–25–0–110–5–3
Buffalo
4–2—4–22–3–110–7–1
Cleveland
1–3–22–4—2–45–13–2
Toronto
0–5–13–2–14–2—7–9–2
Vs. Norris Division
1977–78 NHL records
Team
DET
LAK
MTL
PIT
WSH
Total
Boston
4–0–15–00–4–15–04–0–118–4–3
Buffalo
2–2–13–0–23–20–0–53–1–111–5–9
Cleveland
2–2–11–3–11–40–52–36–17–2
Toronto
2–1–22–30–4–12–34–0–110–11–4
Vs. Patrick Division
1977–78 NHL records
Team
ATL
NYI
NYR
PHI
Total
Boston
2–1–11–34–11–2–18–7–2
Buffalo
2–1–13–22–1–13–0–110–4–3
Cleveland
1–2–11–1–21–30–4–13–10–4
Toronto
2–31–33–13–19–8–0
Vs. Smythe Division
1977–78 NHL records
Team
CHI
COL
MIN
STL
VAN
Total
Boston
3–13–0–13–14–02–0–215–2–3
Buffalo
2–1–13–13–14–01–0–313–3–4
Cleveland
1–31–1–23–0–11–2–12–1–18–7–5
Toronto
2–1–14–04–02–0–23–0–115–1–4 :

## Schedule and results

| No. | R | Date | Score | Opponent | Record |
| 1 | T | October 13, 1977 | 3–3 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1977–78) | 0–0–1 |
| 2 | L | October 15, 1977 | 2–5 | Buffalo Sabres (1977–78) | 0–1–1 |
| 3 | W | October 19, 1977 | 5–4 | Colorado Rockies (1977–78) | 1–1–1 |
| 4 | W | October 22, 1977 | 6–1 | Philadelphia Flyers (1977–78) | 2–1–1 |
| 5 | W | October 23, 1977 | 6–3 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1977–78) | 3–1–1 |
| 6 | T | October 26, 1977 | 2–2 | Montreal Canadiens (1977–78) | 3–1–2 |
| 7 | W | October 29, 1977 | 7–4 | Detroit Red Wings (1977–78) | 4–1–2 |
| 8 | W | November 2, 1977 | 5–1 | @ Vancouver Canucks (1977–78) | 5–1–2 |
| 9 | L | November 3, 1977 | 2–4 | @ Los Angeles Kings (1977–78) | 5–2–2 |
| 10 | W | November 5, 1977 | 5–2 | @ Colorado Rockies (1977–78) | 6–2–2 |
| 11 | W | November 9, 1977 | 4–0 | @ Atlanta Flames (1977–78) | 7–2–2 |
| 12 | W | November 11, 1977 | 3–1 | @ Washington Capitals (1977–78) | 8–2–2 |
| 13 | L | November 12, 1977 | 0–5 | @ Montreal Canadiens (1977–78) | 8–3–2 |
| 14 | W | November 16, 1977 | 5–2 | Washington Capitals (1977–78) | 9–3–2 |
| 15 | W | November 17, 1977 | 2–1 | @ Buffalo Sabres (1977–78) | 10–3–2 |
| 16 | L | November 19, 1977 | 1–3 | Boston Bruins (1977–78) | 10–4–2 |
| 17 | W | November 23, 1977 | 3–2 | @ St. Louis Blues (1977–78) | 11–4–2 |
| 18 | T | November 26, 1977 | 4–4 | Washington Capitals (1977–78) | 11–4–3 |
| 19 | W | November 29, 1977 | 3–2 | Cleveland Barons (1977–78) | 12–4–3 |
| 20 | L | November 30, 1977 | 3–5 | @ Cleveland Barons (1977–78) | 12–5–3 |
| 21 | W | December 3, 1977 | 4–2 | Detroit Red Wings (1977–78) | 13–5–3 |
| 22 | L | December 4, 1977 | 1–3 | @ Boston Bruins (1977–78) | 13–6–3 |
| 23 | W | December 7, 1977 | 6–3 | Minnesota North Stars (1977–78) | 14–6–3 |
| 24 | W | December 9, 1977 | 3–2 | @ Colorado Rockies (1977–78) | 15–6–3 |
| 25 | W | December 10, 1977 | 3–0 | @ Los Angeles Kings (1977–78) | 16–6–3 |
| 26 | W | December 14, 1977 | 3–2 | New York Islanders (1977–78) | 17–6–3 |
| 27 | W | December 16, 1977 | 8–5 | @ Minnesota North Stars (1977–78) | 18–6–3 |
| 28 | W | December 17, 1977 | 7–1 | Chicago Black Hawks (1977–78) | 19–6–3 |
| 29 | T | December 19, 1977 | 4–4 | St. Louis Blues (1977–78) | 19–6–4 |
| 30 | L | December 21, 1977 | 2–3 | Montreal Canadiens (1977–78) | 19–7–4 |
| 31 | W | December 23, 1977 | 6–2 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1977–78) | 20–7–4 |
| 32 | L | December 26, 1977 | 4–5 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1977–78) | 20–8–4 |
| 33 | L | December 28, 1977 | 0–4 | @ Chicago Black Hawks (1977–78) | 20–9–4 |
| 34 | W | December 30, 1977 | 5–0 | @ Cleveland Barons (1977–78) | 21–9–4 |
| 35 | L | December 31, 1977 | 0–3 | Atlanta Flames (1977–78) | 21–10–4 |
| 36 | W | January 4, 1978 | 5–0 | Colorado Rockies (1977–78) | 22–10–4 |
| 37 | L | January 5, 1978 | 1–2 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1977–78) | 22–11–4 |
| 38 | W | January 7, 1978 | 6–4 | Vancouver Canucks (1977–78) | 23–11–4 |
| 39 | L | January 9, 1978 | 2–5 | Atlanta Flames (1977–78) | 23–12–4 |
| 40 | W | January 11, 1978 | 4–3 | @ Minnesota North Stars (1977–78) | 24–12–4 |
| 41 | L | January 13, 1978 | 2–5 | @ Cleveland Barons (1977–78) | 24–13–4 |
| 42 | T | January 14, 1978 | 3–3 | Chicago Black Hawks (1977–78) | 24–13–5 |
| 43 | T | January 17, 1978 | 2–2 | @ St. Louis Blues (1977–78) | 24–13–6 |
| 44 | T | January 19, 1978 | 3–3 | @ Vancouver Canucks (1977–78) | 24–13–7 |
| 45 | L | January 21, 1978 | 1–2 | @ Los Angeles Kings (1977–78) | 24–14–7 |
| 46 | W | January 25, 1978 | 4–3 | @ New York Rangers (1977–78) | 25–14–7 |
| 47 | L | January 26, 1978 | 2–4 | @ New York Islanders (1977–78) | 25–15–7 |
| 48 | W | January 28, 1978 | 7–5 | @ Atlanta Flames (1977–78) | 26–15–7 |
| 49 | T | February 1, 1978 | 2–2 | Buffalo Sabres (1977–78) | 26–15–8 |
| 50 | T | February 4, 1978 | 2–2 | Detroit Red Wings (1977–78) | 26–15–9 |
| 51 | T | February 5, 1978 | 3–3 | @ Boston Bruins (1977–78) | 26–15–10 |
| 52 | W | February 8, 1978 | 5–4 | St. Louis Blues (1977–78) | 27–15–10 |
| 53 | W | February 11, 1978 | 3–2 | New York Rangers (1977–78) | 28–15–10 |
| 54 | W | February 13, 1978 | 4–2 | @ Buffalo Sabres (1977–78) | 29–15–10 |
| 55 | L | February 15, 1978 | 2–4 | Boston Bruins (1977–78) | 29–16–10 |
| 56 | W | February 18, 1978 | 5–4 | Minnesota North Stars (1977–78) | 30–16–10 |
| 57 | W | February 22, 1978 | 5–3 | Cleveland Barons (1977–78) | 31–16–10 |
| 58 | W | February 25, 1978 | 4–0 | Washington Capitals (1977–78) | 32–16–10 |
| 59 | W | February 26, 1978 | 5–3 | @ Chicago Black Hawks (1977–78) | 33–16–10 |
| 60 | L | February 28, 1978 | 3–4 | @ New York Islanders (1977–78) | 33–17–10 |
| 61 | W | March 1, 1978 | 3–2 | Philadelphia Flyers (1977–78) | 34–17–10 |
| 62 | W | March 4, 1978 | 4–3 | Vancouver Canucks (1977–78) | 35–17–10 |
| 63 | W | March 5, 1978 | 4–1 | @ New York Rangers (1977–78) | 36–17–10 |
| 64 | L | March 8, 1978 | 1–5 | Los Angeles Kings (1977–78) | 36–18–10 |
| 65 | L | March 9, 1978 | 1–4 | @ Montreal Canadiens (1977–78) | 36–19–10 |
| 66 | W | March 11, 1978 | 5–2 | Cleveland Barons (1977–78) | 37–19–10 |
| 67 | W | March 12, 1978 | 7–1 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1977–78) | 38–19–10 |
| 68 | W | March 15, 1978 | 5–2 | @ Washington Capitals (1977–78) | 39–19–10 |
| 69 | L | March 18, 1978 | 2–3 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1977–78) | 39–20–10 |
| 70 | L | March 19, 1978 | 4–6 | @ Boston Bruins (1977–78) | 39–21–10 |
| 71 | L | March 22, 1978 | 2–6 | New York Islanders (1977–78) | 39–22–10 |
| 72 | L | March 23, 1978 | 1–4 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1977–78) | 39–23–10 |
| 73 | L | March 25, 1978 | 2–5 | New York Rangers (1977–78) | 39–24–10 |
| 74 | W | March 27, 1978 | 3–0 | Los Angeles Kings (1977–78) | 40–24–10 |
| 75 | L | March 29, 1978 | 4–7 | @ Atlanta Flames (1977–78) | 40–25–10 |
| 76 | W | April 1, 1978 | 3–2 | Buffalo Sabres (1977–78) | 41–25–10 |
| 77 | L | April 2, 1978 | 3–6 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1977–78) | 41–26–10 |
| 78 | L | April 5, 1978 | 3–6 | Montreal Canadiens (1977–78) | 41–27–10 |
| 79 | L | April 8, 1978 | 1–3 | Boston Bruins (1977–78) | 41–28–10 |
| 80 | L | April 9, 1978 | 1–2 | @ Buffalo Sabres (1977–78) | 41–29–10 |

## Playoffs

* Won preliminary round (2–0) versus Los Angeles Kings
* Won quarter-finals (4–3) versus New York Islanders
* Lost semi-finals (4–0) versus Montreal Canadiens

## Player statistics
### Regular season
#### Scoring

| Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- | PPG | SHG | GWG |
| Darryl Sittler | C | 80 | 45 | 72 | 117 | 100 | 34 | 14 | 0 | 8 |
| Lanny McDonald | RW | 74 | 47 | 40 | 87 | 54 | 34 | 11 | 0 | 5 |
| Borje Salming | D | 80 | 16 | 60 | 76 | 70 | 30 | 6 | 0 | 5 |
| Ian Turnbull | D | 77 | 14 | 47 | 61 | 77 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 3 |
| Ron Ellis | RW | 80 | 26 | 24 | 50 | 17 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 5 |
| Tiger Williams | LW | 78 | 19 | 31 | 50 | 351 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 5 |
| Errol Thompson | LW | 59 | 17 | 22 | 39 | 10 | 17 | 4 | 1 | 2 |
| Pat Boutette | C/RW | 80 | 17 | 19 | 36 | 120 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| Bruce Boudreau | C | 40 | 11 | 18 | 29 | 12 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| George Ferguson | C | 73 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 37 | −9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jack Valiquette | C | 60 | 8 | 13 | 21 | 15 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| Stan Weir | C | 30 | 12 | 5 | 17 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brian Glennie | D | 77 | 2 | 15 | 17 | 62 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jerry Butler | RW | 73 | 9 | 7 | 16 | 49 | −10 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Trevor Johansen | D | 79 | 2 | 14 | 16 | 82 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jimmy Jones | RW | 78 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 23 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| Randy Carlyle | D | 49 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 31 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Pelyk | D | 41 | 1 | 11 | 12 | 14 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Dan Maloney | LW | 13 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 25 | −5 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Jim McKenny | D | 15 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kurt Walker | D | 40 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 69 | −5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ron Wilson | D | 13 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | −5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| John Anderson | RW | 17 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Don Ashby | C | 12 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | −4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Inge Hammarstrom | LW | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Alain Belanger | RW | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bob Neely | LW | 11 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | −3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Palmateer | G | 63 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Paul Evans | C/LW | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | −1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Larry Hopkins | LW | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Gord McRae | G | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

#### Goaltending

| Player | MIN | GP | W | L | T | GA | GAA | SO |
| Mike Palmateer | 3760 | 63 | 34 | 19 | 9 | 172 | 2.74 | 5 |
| Gord McRae | 1040 | 18 | 7 | 10 | 1 | 57 | 3.29 | 1 |
| Team: | 4800 | 80 | 41 | 29 | 10 | 229 | 2.86 | 6 |

### Playoffs
#### Scoring

| Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | PPG | SHG | GWG |
| Ian Turnbull | D | 13 | 6 | 10 | 16 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Darryl Sittler | C | 13 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Lanny McDonald | RW | 13 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| George Ferguson | C | 13 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Pat Boutette | C/RW | 13 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jimmy Jones | RW | 13 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ron Ellis | RW | 13 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Stan Weir | C | 13 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Borje Salming | D | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Dan Maloney | LW | 13 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 17 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Jack Valiquette | C | 13 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Tiger Williams | LW | 12 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 63 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Trevor Johansen | D | 13 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jerry Butler | RW | 13 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Randy Carlyle | D | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Pelyk | D | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| John Anderson | RW | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brian Glennie | D | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Palmateer | G | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kurt Walker | D | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

#### Goaltending

| Player | MIN | GP | W | L | GA | GAA | SO |
| Mike Palmateer | 795 | 13 | 6 | 7 | 32 | 2.42 | 2 |
| Team: | 795 | 13 | 6 | 7 | 32 | 2.42 | 2 |
    Pos = Position; GPI = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
    Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

## Awards and records

* Börje Salming, Molson Cup (most game star selections for Toronto Maple Leafs)
* Borje Salming, NHL 2nd All-Star Team
* Darryl Sittler, NHL 2nd All-Star Team

## Transactions

The Maple Leafs have been involved in the following transactions during the 1977–78 season.

### Trades

| November 1, 1977 | To St. Louis BluesInge Hammarstrom | To Toronto Maple LeafsJerry Butler |
| January 9, 1978 | To Colorado RockiesBob Neely | To Toronto Maple LeafsCash |
| January 29, 1978 | To Vancouver CanucksClaire Alexander | To Toronto Maple LeafsCash |
| March 13, 1978 | To Detroit Red WingsErrol Thompson 1st round pick in 1978 – Brent Peterson 2nd round pick in 1978 – Al Jensen 1st round pick in 1980 – Mike Blaisdell | To Toronto Maple LeafsDan Maloney 2nd round pick in 1980 – Craig Muni |
| May 30, 1978 | To Colorado RockiesCash | To Toronto Maple LeafsBob Neely |
| June 13, 1978 | To Pittsburgh PenguinsRandy Carlyle George Ferguson | To Toronto Maple LeafsDave Burrows 6th round pick in 1978 – Mel Hewitt |
| June 14, 1978 | To Los Angeles KingsBrian Glennie Kurt Walker Scott Garland 2nd round pick in 1979 – Mark Hardy | To Toronto Maple LeafsDave Hutchison Lorne Stamler |
| June 14, 1978 | To Minnesota North Stars4th round pick in 1981 – Terry Tait | To Toronto Maple LeafsPaul Harrison |
| June 15, 1978 | To St. Louis Blues11th round pick in 1978 – Jean-François Boutin 12th round pick in 1978 – Paul Stasiuk 13th round pick in 1978 – Brian Crombeen 14th round pick in 1978 – Blair Wheeler | To Toronto Maple LeafsCash |

### Waivers

| October 10, 1977 | To New York RangersWayne Thomas |

### Free agents

| Player | Former team |
| Jimmy Jones | Rochester Americans (AHL) |
| Larry Hopkins | Undrafted Free Agent |