Expectations often determine how we feel about our teams. Last weekend in Boston, fan expectations were high as the NBA and NHL playoffs returned to TD Garden. Those expectations only heightened when the Bruins and Celtics prevailed in their 2023-24 playoff debuts.

It could be a long, fun spring on Causeway Street in Boston. The Bruins set the tone with a victory over Toronto in Game 1 on Saturday night. It was a dominating effort, with Jake DeBrusk coming to life after what he called a “pretty disappointing” season. DeBrusk scored twice and added an assist in the 5-1 win, his first three-point game in more than a year.

DeBrusk was the offensive star but the Bruins never would have been in position to win without stellar goaltending from Jeremy Swayman. A former University of Maine goalie, Swayman stopped 35 of 36 shots, including several key saves early in the second period with the Bruins clinging to a one-goal lead.

Swayman had never previously started a series and he handled it with ease.

The general consensus is Bruins coach Jim Montgomery will use a rotation this postseason, alternating Swayman with Linus Ullmark, which is what he did during the regular season. Montgomery didn’t do it in the first round last year and the Bruins were eliminated.

The Celtics began their playoff run about 14 hours after Swayman and Ullmark performed their obligatory victory hug Saturday night. Expectations couldn’t be higher for the Celtics, and they lived up to them with a dominating 114-94 win over the Miami Heat in Game 1 of an Eastern Conference quarterfinal series Sunday afternoon.

It was a much more enjoyable experience for the sellout crowd compared to the last time the teams met in the playoffs — a 103-84 Miami victory in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals last season.

The Heat are playing without star Jimmy Butler, who is expected to miss the series with a right knee injury suffered against the 76ers in a play-in tournament game last week.

Philadelphia star Joel Embiid is playing with a sore knee. Milwaukee Bucks standout Giannis Antetokounmpo missed Game 1 of their series against Indiana with a calf strain. The Eastern Conference, already there for the taking, is getting weaker by the day. Anything short of an appearance in the NBA Finals would have to be considered a disappointment for the Celtics at this point.

There’s a real chance the duck boats will roll through the streets of Boston this June. Maybe twice. How nice it is to daydream about a championship parade, especially after a disappointing winter for the Red Sox and Patriots.

The Red Sox promised to go “full throttle” in free agency, and didn’t. The Patriots, meanwhile, vowed to “burn some cash” after missing out on the playoffs and firing coach Bill Belichick. That, too, didn’t happen.

Needless to say, expectations for both teams couldn’t be lower today. The Sox have surprised us with a 13-10 start, but injuries to key players are a concern.

The Patriots are now a team that dreams about landing a franchise quarterback in the NFL draft, which begins Thursday with the first round and runs through the weekend. You know the dynasty is over when the draft is the highlight of your football year.

The Celtics and Bruins could be well on their way to the second round by the time we learn what the Patriots will do with the No. 3 overall pick in the NFL draft.

They better be. We expect nothing less from them this spring.

Tom Caron is a studio host for the Red Sox broadcast on NESN.

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