from Terry Koshan of the Toronto Sun,

Hands up if you figured the Maple Leafs would be in a playoff spot in the first week of January.

OK, put them down. We know you’re not telling the truth.

Yet that’s where the Leafs, 30th-place finishers last season, find themselves following a 4-2 victory against the New Jersey Devils on Friday night.

The win at the Prudential Center improved the Leafs’ record to 18-12-8, and their 44 points is tied with the Boston Bruins in the Atlantic Division. Because the Leafs have played three fewer games than the Bruins, they bump the Bruins and take over third place in the Atlantic.

“As a group we know what we are capable of and that has been the goal since the start of the year, to be in that mix, in that race for a playoff spot, and I think we have the talent to do so,” star rookie Auston Matthews said.

“We’re a fast, skilled, talented young group and we continue to get better.”

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