The Maple Leafs are on a run.



After downing the Panthers in a shootout on Wednesday night, on the road, they have been playing at playoff pace for more than a month now. They’re 7-4-4 in their last 15 games, going back to Nov. 23, a 98-point pace over 82 games.



In that stretch, they’ve given up the second fewest goals in the league (31). They’ve outshot their opponents by 62 – an average of more than four per game. And they’ve been a top five possession team, hanging around 54 per cent.



What’s interesting about all that is what that’s done to the standings in the Eastern Conference. Toronto has been creeping up, slowly, into the conversation.



Here’s a look at a projection of all 16 teams to their 82-game totals, to remove any advantage for teams that have played more games:



This is the best position the Leafs have been in the standings so far this season. They’re...