After 13 games this season, and a month into the hockey calendar, the Toronto Maple Leafs find themselves in rarified air — the top spot in the NHL standings.

True, they’re tied with Pittsburgh with 19 points but they have a game in hand.

As we speak, researchers are frantically trying to find the last time the Leafs were officially in first place past the five-game mark.

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We asked our hockey writers, columnists and editors what they thought about the Leafs’ 9-3-1 start. Here are their answers:

“Back then, the heroes were Pat Burns, a young goalie nicknamed The Cat and a star winger acquired by trade who blossomed into a 50-goal shooter in Toronto. The fall of ’93, which started with 10 straight wins, put the Leafs into first place in the entire NHL and ultimately led to the league semi-finals. That was a veteran laden Leaf team built for immediate success; this year’s group is a bunch of kids.

Not sure what the short-term will bring, but the long-term view beyond the ’11-12 campaign should be decidedly more rosy than it proved to be back then.”

Damien Cox

“I think it’s great for our city.

Pro sports is supposed to a communal experience, about taking a vicarious journey together with a team, about riding it out through thick and thin. But let’s face it, as loyal as Leaf fans happen to be, this if the first dose of thick that’s been doled out in a long while.

The Leafs — not to mention the Raptors and Blue Jays — have been testing the citizenry’s tolerance for the thinnest of gruel for most of a decade, and far longer if you’re of the belief that a hockey team from one of the world’s hockey capitals should win the Stanley Cup every now and then.

There are limits to the therapeutic powers of prolonged collective misery, and Toronto’s long past them.

I don’t get the sense that the fans of this team are asking for much. They’re not demanding a Stanley Cup; although maybe that’ll come soon enough if this first-overall thing becomes a habit. They just want to believe they're in the hunt for something, that the ride they're on isn't going to end like it's ended too often of late — with a head-on collision with a Leaf driving a golf cart in early April. Well, the hunt is on, and it won't take long for Toronto to get used to the fun.

Dave Feschuk

“The Leafs are in first, eh? I’ve heard some say they’ve had an easy schedule, and certainly five games at home to open the season does sound easy. But they’ve won in Montreal, they won in New York, they won back-to-back on the road just now and they’ve beaten Pittsburgh. None of that is easy.

The thing about it, to me, is they haven’t actually played — as they say in hockey parlance — a full 60 minutes yet. Maybe the win in Columbus was as close as they’ve gotten. Their defence is suspect. Their penalty killing atrocious.

They’ve won some nights, because of goaltending — especially James Reimer at the start of the season. Some nights, it’s been the scorers, and here’s to Phil Kessel, Joffrey Lupul and Clarke MacArthur.

If they actually put together solid 60 minutes hockey — something young teams like the Leafs have trouble doing — over a string of games, they could be really dangerous. For now, they’re fun to watch.”

Kevin McGran

“It’s exciting, and sobering.

On the one hand, it’s a handsome accomplishment, a tribute to the players, coaching staff, and management — how many teams would love to be sporting that record right now?

On the other hand — and you knew there’d be a flip side to this — it’s barely November. The real excitement will build if the Leafs are at or near the top of the standings at the end of this month.

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Mark Zwolinski

“The Leafs are in first place but you can feel the fans are hedging their bets just a little.

Have you heard the horns honking on Yonge St. yet?

Have you heard anyone trash-talking other teams yet as they fall one by one to the Leafs?

Once that happens you’ll know the city has decided to buy into this team as a winner.

Jon Filson

“Well it’s better than being in last place. But all kidding aside, the Leafs lofty perch shouldn’t be that surprising if you consider how strong they finished last season — posting an 18-7-6 record to end the season. Counting this season, Leafs are 27-10-7.

What’s also amazing is they’re leading the league and they’ve managed to keep winning without No. 1 goalie James Reimer and Luke Schenn being slow out of the gate. Few thought Jonas Gustavssson could win a game never mind four and Ben Scrivens’ play against Columbus might have been the best netminding performance of the year.

A slow start killed Leafs playoff chances last season and so far the team isn’t wilting.The return of Tim Connolly has given Leafs a legitimate No. 1 line with Phil Kessel and Joffrey Lupul having career years so far. Clarke MacArthur has also found his scoring touch and if Nikolai Kulemin gets untracked, then Leafs will have two offensive lines that can match any in the league. In fact, their third and fourth lines have also shown they can put the puck in the net.

Leafs penalty killing still needs a whole lot of work but as long as faceoff specialist Dave Steckel remains healthy, they have a chance to improve. Jake Gardiner has made some rookie mistakes but his upside gives Leafs a nice trade weapon as surely somebody will want Cody Franson. Captain Dion Phaneuf has also returned to playing the way he did in Calgary when he was a Norris Trophy candidate.

Bob Mitchell

“Many times bitten, many times shy. Leafs Nation is treading cautiously, and rightfully so. Like Bills fans were when their team shot out of the gate 3-1. And had the Eagles on deck.

We’ll know the Leafs bandwagon is on track when fans start chanting ‘Thank you, Seguin’ against the Bruins.”

Eddie Lee

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