Penguins clinch a playoff spot and Maple Leaf fans rejoice.

It was a huge win for the Penguins on Saturday, clinching a playoff spot. It must have been particularly satisfying given the criticism and adversity the franchise faced earlier on in the season, going so far as firing head coach Mike Johnston.The Penguins managed to turn it around, and even much maligned forward Phil Kessel has seemingly found his stride in recent weeks, and no one is happier about the massive turn around than the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Leafs committed themselves to a full rebuild, and by all accounts have been successful thus far, and one of the key pieces of that rebuild was the trade of forward Phil Kessel to the Penguins. One of the key components of that trade for the Maple Leafs was the conditional draft pick they received from Pittsburgh, a draft pick that will now be a 1st rounder in 2016 as a result of the Penguins qualifying for the post-season.

While Leaf fans are expecting a rebuild lasting several seasons, with multiple picks in each of the first four rounds, they will be getting a taste of the future sooner rather than later.

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