There's an old wives tale that circles through Leafs nation every spring about how the team does in March. As bad as the Leafs have been since the end of the lockout, their play in March has been spectacular. 

Every now and then, some Leafs fan will come out and say "If they played like this all the time then they'd make the playoffs!" 

Well folks, I did the math and… wow.

Here are the numbers. If the math confuses you, I explain it at the bottom of this article.

The 09-10 Leafs: 30-38-14 for 74 pts. 15th in the East, 29th in the NHL.

in March: 9-5-2 for 20 points.

Would have 91 points (+17 points) for 6th in the East, 14th in NHL.

That's right, in the mess that was last season, the Leafs have earned a playoff spot! Then consider the fact that Boston's draft pick that ended up being Tyler Seguin, would not have been Tyler Seguin.

The 08-09 Leafs: 34-35-13 for 81 points. Ended up 12th in the East, 24th in the NHL.

in March: 6-6-1 for 13 points.

Would've had: 82 points (+1 point) for 12th in the East, 24th in the NHL.

The only year since the lockout where March changed nothing.

The 07-08 Leafs: 36-35-11 for 83 points. Ended up 12th in the East, 24th in the NHL.

in March: 8-4-1 for 17 points. Would've had: 107 points (+34 points) for 1st in the East, 3rd in the NHL.

You read correctly, folks. If the Toronto Maple Leafs produced the way they did in March 2008, not only would they have made the playoffs, they would have finished 1st place in the East.

The 06-07 Leafs: 40-31-11 for 91 points. Ended up 9th in the East, 18th in the NHL.

in March: 8-4-2 for 18 points. Would've had: 105 points (+14 points) for 6th in the East, 11th in the NHL.

Just in case you're wondering - yes - this was one of the seasons the Leafs missed the playoffs by a single point. In fact, this was the season that Wade Dubielewicz backstopped the Islanders to a shootout win over the Devils to clinch the final playoff spot in the East.

The 05-06 Leafs: 41-33-8 for 90 points. Ended up 9th in the East, 18th in the NHL. in March: 7-6-1 for 15 points.

Would've had: 87 points...

Now I know what you're thinking. The Leafs would have actually done worse if they had played at their March pace all season. How then, are the 05-06 Leafs on this list? The answer: April.

Since the lockout, the Leafs haven't actually been that good in April. Enter April 2006...

Does the name J.S. Aubin ring a bell? Leafs fans are well aware of the J.S. they've have between the pipes this season (Giguere), but in April 2006, J.S. Aubin helped the Leafs (almost) pull off one of the most unlikely playoff surges in team history. The Leafs were on fire, going 9-1-2 in their final 12 games. Combine this team's March with its April...

in March/April: 14-7-3 for 31 points.

Would've had: 105 points (+15 points) for 5th in the East, and 7th in the NHL.

As you might remember, the Leafs fell one point shy of the playoffs in 05-06.

So what did we learn?

Based on these stats, if the Leafs treated the whole season like it was March, they would have made the playoffs  in four of the past five seasons.

They'd 1-0-0 so far this March. Now we wait and see.

***The mathematical explanation***

Divide the points the Leafs earned in March by all the points that were up for grabs. For example: If the Leafs were 8-4-1 they would have earned 17 out of a possible 26 points. Divide 17 by 26 and you get 0.6538.

Now multiply that number by 164, the maximum amount of points a team can earn in an 82-game season.

= 107.23 points (or 107)

Simple, eh?