The Battle of Ontario (French: Bataille de l'Ontario) is a National Hockey League (NHL) rivalry between the Ottawa Senators and the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Both teams compete in the Atlantic Division and with current NHL scheduling, they meet three to four times per season.
In February 1904, the original Ottawa Senators, aka the 'Silver Seven', defeated the Toronto Marlboros in a Stanley Cup challenge.
The rivalry reached new heights in 2000, as the teams met for the first time in the playoffs with the Maple Leafs dispatching the Senators in six games.
[7][8] The next season, they met again in the first round as Ottawa entered the playoffs ranked second in the conference and the Maple Leafs seventh.
The two teams were evenly matched, and the Maple Leafs managed to win the second-round series in the full seven games and advance to the conference finals.
One notable incident occurred late in game five when Senators captain Daniel Alfredsson hit forward Darcy Tucker in a questionable hit-from-behind,which did not draw a penalty.
[12] In 2002–03, the rivalry hit an all-time high when Darcy Tucker attacked the Senators' Chris Neil, who was sitting on the bench.
Suspensions were announced a few hours after Tucker and Domi appeared at NHL head offices in Toronto for a hearing.
[13] On January 6, 2004, the Maple Leafs were playing a game against the Nashville Predators, when Toronto captain Mats Sundin's stick broke on an attempted shot at the blue line and he threw it away in disgust.
This incident added to the rivalry, and Maple Leafs fans would boo Alfredsson at every opportunity for the remainder of his career.
As the Senators clinched the top spot in the Eastern Conference, the Maple Leafs claiming eighth position would have ensured a first-round match-up.
[19] In 2006–07, the Maple Leafs failed to qualify for the playoffs, finishing in ninth position and missing for a second consecutive year.
[20] Meanwhile, the Senators made it to the Stanley Cup Finals and became the first Ontario-based team to reach the NHL's championship series since the Maple Leafs' most recent title four decades prior.
Ottawa finished in seventh place in the conference after a 15–2 start and leading the league at one point, barely making it into the playoffs.
[24] The 2008–09 season was a poor one for both teams, with the Senators finishing eleventh and the Maple Leafs twelfth in the Eastern Conference.
This marked the first time that both Ontario teams failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs since the Senators joined the NHL in 1992.
[29] The 2014–15 season saw the Senators finish seventh in the Eastern Conference with 99 points, securing the first wildcard playoff position.
The trade saw Maple Leaf's captain Dion Phaneuf, Matt Frattin, Casey Bailey, Ryan Rupert, and Cody Donaghey traded to Ottawa for Jared Cowen, Milan Michalek, Colin Greening, Tobias Lindberg, and a second-round pick in the 2017 NHL entry draft.
The Maple Leafs' rookie centre Auston Matthews scored four goals in his NHL debut, but the Senators prevailed 5–4 in overtime.
Ottawa continued their postseason run to the second overtime of game seven of the Eastern Conference finals against the Pittsburgh Penguins (beating the Boston Bruins and New York Rangers).
Maple Leafs defenceman Morgan Rielly responded by cross-checking Greig in the head, leading to a brawl between both teams.