Frustrating the Bergeron line is, to put it kindly, one mother of an assignment. And three games into this best-of-seven series with the Boston Bruins, you can point to Toronto defenceman Jake Muzzin, who has drawn the top assignment with partner Nikita Zaitsev, as a key reason why the Maple Leafs, up two games to one, have so far succeeded at keeping Boston’s big trio at bay.

Hard to believe, but Muzzin is preparing for an even more daunting job in the wake of Wednesday’s Game 4 — fatherhood.

At least, that was the plan as of Tuesday. Things can change quickly in the baby-delivery business, of course. But if the current situation holds, Muzzin said he plans to play in Game 4 at Scotiabank Arena on Wednesday night, witness the scheduled birth of he and wife Courtney’s first child on Thursday in Toronto and, after some precious postnatal moments in the glow of the couple’s new addition — it’s a girl, or so the ultrasounds have suggested — find himself in Boston for Friday’s Game 5.

“Everything’s scheduled. I won’t miss any time,” Muzzin said. “It’s rough timing. But it is what it is.”

Rough for everyone, perhaps, but Courtney, who’s pushing hard against the nine-month limit.

“She’s good. She’s ready for the baby to come, though,” Muzzin said.

Word is it’s not easy carrying around another human being. And there have been times in the latter part of the regular season and into this series when you could make the case that Muzzin, to put it kindly, has single-handedly lifted Zaitsev, who had struggled often before experiencing a noticeable bump in form alongside his current partner. Certainly Muzzin, after being acquired in late January from the Kings and taking a few weeks to acclimatize to Toronto’s schemes, has grown into one of Toronto’s most dependable blueliners.

While Morgan Rielly has continued his evolution into a No. 1 horse — Rielly played a stellar 28 minutes in Monday’s Game 3 win — Muzzin and Zaitsev have helped mitigate the injury-related downturn currently being experienced by Jake Gardiner, who played just 14 minutes in Game 3, when he looked at times hobbled by the back injury that sidelined him for more than a month down the regular season’s stretch.

“When we acquired Muzz, we didn’t know he was playing with (Zaitsev), we didn’t know (Gardiner) was getting hurt,” Leafs head coach Mike Babcock said. “This just, I don’t want to say by accident, but it just worked out. They’re hard guys to play against. They play hard. Muzz can really move the puck as well. And Z, we think, closes faster than anybody on our team and makes it harder on the other team.”

We’re only three games into a series that seems destined to go six or seven. So Leafs fans are probably best to do what Babcock did on Tuesday afternoon when he was asked about the so-far excellent play of starting goaltender Frederik Andersen — that is, knock on wood.

Still, the Bruins are, in large part, a one-line team. And Toronto’s success against that No. 1 unit is beyond promising. The great Patrice Bergeron, Boston’s hall-of-fame-bound, four-time Selke Trophy winner and two-time Olympic gold medallist, has yet to register a point in this series while playing at 5-on-5. Linemates Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak have one goal and one assist, respectively, playing at even strength. Last post-season, when the same two teams met and the Bruins held a 2-1 series lead at this juncture, the Bergeron line had combined for 16 points at even strength.

Toronto’s top forward line of John Tavares, Mitch Marner and Zach Hyman have loads to do with that, too, of course. In the wake of Monday night the big story was Marner’s valiant dying-seconds bravery in diving face-first toward the point to block a pair of Pastrnak shots. (“There’s dentists for a reason, so whatever,” Marner said Tuesday, his legend growing as he spoke.)

“Just a guy doing whatever it takes to keep the puck out of the net — we need everybody with that mentality and that mindset,” said Muzzin, who combined with Zaitsev in Game 3 to limit the Bergeron threesome to one high-danger scoring chance, according to NaturalStatTrick.com.

It went under the radar that Muzzin led the team in blocked shots Monday, finding himself in front of three Boston blasts; and that Zaitsev, who led the team in blocked shots during the regular season, is tops on the team in blocked shots for the series with six.

“It’s the same thing we always say — just try to take away time and space and play hard on ’em,” Muzzin said. “Me and Z, we did a pretty good job (in Game 3) of limiting their chances. We didn’t spend that much time in our zone. I thought we did a good job of breaking out. It’s the same stuff over and over again. Just (take away) time and space and play hard on ’em.”

Limit time and space, block shots, and when the game’s over, walk into a dressing room where, in the wake of Game 3, Leafs backup goaltender Michael Hutchinson was introducing his newborn daughter, Lilah, to his teammates. Hutchinson missed Games 1 and 2 while his wife, Jenna, gave birth. The days since, he said, have been “a crazy time.” Not that Lilah showed it Wednesday night; Hutchinson said she slept through the entire dressing-room tour.

“I brought Lilah over to Muzz and I just asked him, ‘Are you ready for this?’ ” Hutchinson said. “He’s pretty pumped for his kid to come. But it’s one of those things — you just have to enjoy every single moment. And that’s one thing about playing here. The Maple Leafs made sure I was able to enjoy every single moment. It’s such a special time in your life.”

Far from the stereotype of the ever-pacing, beyond-nervous father-to-be, more than one teammate said Muzzin has been as calm about his impending arrival as he is steady on the ice.

“He hasn’t been too stressed out, I don’t think. I mean, at least he’s not wearing it,” Rielly said. “But it’s coming down the pipe here soon, so we’ll see.”

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It’s coming down the pipe, indeed — another new arrival in Leafland and, in all likelihood, some hard pushes, too, from the Bruins.

“There’s always stuff going on outside of hockey, no matter what it is. Whether it’s that or people have got all kinds of problems going on. It’s part of the job,” Muzzin said. “You deal with that away from the rink, and when you come to the rink, it’s business. It’s work. And that’s the mindset I’ve taken toward this.

“Especially when it’s something like this — a life-changing moment, really. It’ll be exciting. But I’m excited here, too.”