With only a few weeks left until the trade deadline, Kyle Dubas and the Toronto Maple Leafs will need to make a move fast if they want to squeeze into the playoffs.
After a loss against the Florida Panthers, everyone is preaching for the Toronto Maple Leafs to make a trade now.
The game was a mix of bad luck and some poor play in the defensive zone from a certain player (Cody Ceci). It was unfortunate because this was a game they had to win, and they didn’t.
Fans are now preaching for the departure of Ceci as some believe he was the one that cost the Toronto Maple Leafs the game, and at some level, they’re not wrong.
But to be able to bring a defenseman back in return for Ceci, or just to get a team to take on that contract is unlikely. The 26-year-old has only one goal in 53 games and only has eight points in that span.
His corsi is trending downward, which was likely expected. And his defensive play, is just well, not good enough.
If the Toronto Maple Leafs want to become a consistent team, it has to start with the trade of Ceci.
Trading Cody Ceci isn’t the only job that Dubas has before February 24th.
The Toronto Maple Leafs need to decide what they’re going to do about their goaltending situation. Some of the story could tell itself as Michael Hutchinson is set to start against the New York Rangers.
If it’s a rough start, Dubas might put the gas to the pedal for a trade. Yet if it’s a good start, Dubas still has to make the decision.
The bottom line is — Dubas has to do something now. What he did last season in the trade for Jake Muzzin, he got an extra month to learn and get the system down pat.
That time is gone now. Every day is another inch closer to the deadline.
I understand that you have to be patient sometimes and wait for the best opportunity, but if the Toronto Maple Leafs continue the inconsistency, it will be more than just the fans who are upset.
And if they start free-falling through the standings, which is unlikely, then it turns into panic mode.
But Dubas understands when to make a trade and how to make it good too. And while the clock is ticking, timing is everything. It could possibly make or break their playoff hopes.
Even a good trade might not help the Toronto Maple Leafs secure a spot, but I can guarantee one thing: they ain’t missing the playoffs this season.