On Saturday night, the Maple Leafs stared down a near mirror image of what they hope to be in future seasons. It was a showdown between the Chicago Blackhawks, the team of the past decade, and Toronto, a team that hopes to be exactly that for the next one.



Since the 2009-10 season, the Blackhawks have won three Stanley Cups. They look ready for another run this year too. Before the Cups came, they were a scrappy team full of promise, making a jump from 71 points in 2006-07 to 88 points in 2007-08, not unlike this year’s Leafs jumping from 69 points last year to a 93-point pace this year.



That 2007-08 Chicago team featured two 19-year-old rookie stars in Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane. That’s where the comparisons to this Leafs roster begins.



The Leafs have two wunderkids of their own, both of whom are 19, and both of whom are built in the same mould as Toews and Kane. Auston Matthews is a big, dominant centre who sees the game...