Toronto Maple Leafs and Jets Lose Matthews/Laine Rivalry

When the Toronto Maple Leafs played the Winnipeg Jets this week I think a lot of us were disappointed that we were robbed of Patrik Laine v. Auston Matthews.

Laine sat out the game with an upper body injury, and the Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Jets without much of a fight. It was alright though because the Leafs and Jets are slated to play ten games against each other this year, plenty more opportunities to see Matthews v. Laine. Well, not any more.

The Winnipeg Jets have traded Patrik Laine out of the Canadian division to the Columbus Blue Jackets. Along with Laine the Jets also trade Jack Roslovic, who recently requested a trade out of Winnipeg just as Laine has for what seems like his whole career.

To be honest, I do not think there was ever a debate on who the better player was between Auston Matthews and Patrik Laine. I didn’t buy the storyline leading up to the draft and I definitely did not buy in after watching both of them play for the next four seasons.

Matthews has clearly shown himself to be the better player and I think the only person in the world that might think otherwise is Patrik Laine. Best of luck to Jarmo Kekalainen and the Blue Jackets organization with signing him to under 11 million next season. I have a feeling there might be a hold out in the future of this relationship.

Toronto Maple Leafs vs Jets

Laine is out of the Canadian division now, but it it’s not all good news. The Winnipeg Jets in return for Laine, brought in Pierre Luc Dubois to be their #2 C.  Good news for Jets fans, but for Leafs fans that hated seeing Dubois on the other side of the ice during the Maple Leafs and Blue Jackets five game play-in series, may not be ecstatic to see him another nine times this season.

Do not let the latest clips of Dubois putting in an awful effort fool you, Dubois is an excellent player. He was a force for the Blue Jackets in the bubble last year and a major reason that the Leafs were on the outside looking in.

Not that a combination of Mark Scheiffle and Dubois can necessarily rival the Leafs with Matthews and Tavares up the middle. It also can’t compare to the Edmonton Oilers 1-2 punch of McDavid and Draisaitl. But they obviously realize that to compete with the top teams in the Canadian Division it will be necessary to have strength up the middle, especially on the top two lines.

Having said all of this I still do not think that this elevates Winnipeg’s standings in the Canadian Division. I would still place them out of a top four spot in the division, just missing out on a playoff berth by the end of the season. I understand this trade was made to satisfy the players and eliminate distractions from their own locker rooms.

I do not understand, though, trading away your distraction and bringing in someone else’s distraction. Especially without truly knowing the reasons that each player was dissatisfied with their situation. It will be interesting to watch these situations play out over the course of this season and into the off-season.