4 Toronto Maple Leafs Prospects Who Could Be Traded at Deadline

The Toronto Maple Leafs will need to trade draft picks and prospects to make a splash at the NHL Trade Deadline this year.

In order to acquire a high-end player, the Toronto Maple Leafs will more than likely have to say goodbye to a few of their prospects.

Although you’d prefer to keep everyone in the system and develop them into future NHLers, sometimes you have to trade away a future big-leaguer for someone who’s already established. NHL general manager’s love stock-piling prospects and draft picks, despite the majority of them never turning into anything fruitful.

I can understand the allure of a draft-pick or a prospect, but when you’re a good team (like the Toronto Maple Leafs), it’s worth shipping away as many of them as possible if it means acquiring a player who’s a legit NHLer.

Would you rather have a prospect, who may be a first-line player, or acquire a player who’s already an established second-liner? I’d rather take the player we know and trust over the prospect, who could be great, or could be a bust.

As per usual, the Toronto Maple Leafs system is in a good spot right now. The Toronto Marlies are playing well and their other prospects oversees or in NCAA have high potential.

Kyle Dubas noted that Matthews Knies, Topi Niemela, Nick Robertson and Nick Abruzzese are off the table for a rental player, but he didn’t say they were untouchable.

However, based on this exercise, we’ll leave them out of the equation and focus on four other prospects who could be traded at the NHL Trade Deadline.