Expecting the Toronto Maple Leafs to do the Un-Expected

The Toronto Maple Leafs would be insane to draft a player tomorrow night with the 25th overall selection.

While the Toronto Maple Leafs are highly likely to re-sign their twin MVP superstar forwards to contract extensions before they hit the open market, the fact that there are just two years left while both Matthews and Marner are under contract tells you they will be trading that pick. 

It’s win-now time.

To be honest, it was probably pretty stupid to retain it ahead of the playoffs, considering they ended up losing by a single goal.  Could they have traded that pick for a goal? Then again, maybe they overcome the horrendous officiating of games six and seven if they just played their best defenseman? Who knows?

What we do know, is that the Leafs are reworking their front office, and that they need a new goalie, and that they would most like to find a physical top-four defender, and a power-forward, and a way to get Rasmus Sandin into the lineup.

It all starts today.  The NHL draft is in just over 24 hours. It’s been a week since Kyle Dubas infamously changed his profile pic to a photo of him with a phone up to each ear –  i.e he’s been busy.

Well expect a culmination of sorts to that work today and tomorrow.

Toronto Maple Leafs and the NHL Draft

Jessie Puljujarvi is available, and the Oilers are the worst run team in the NHL.  That might not be the power-forward they desire, but those are rare.  A solid defender who makes everyone on the ice better, and who would be an elite player if he ever learned to finish, which he might.

Effective players who don’t score much and are on the outs with their current team tend to provide excellent value.  I would be shocked if the Leafs were not extremely interested in adding this player.

As for what else they might get up to, who knows?  The Leafs don’t let anything slip and the insiders who cover them tend to filter everything through what they think the Leafs will do, which they seem to base on what other teams usually do, which  is never what the Leafs end up doing.

I would expect them to pursue a star goalie, not a cheap one.

I expect them to force players to waive at least one NTC and maybe ever two.

Almost no one else I am reading or listening to thinks they will do these things. The consensus I get from reading the room (so to speak) is that the Leafs will pursue a cheap goalie, maybe Fleury, and trade Sandin, while trying to bring back almost the exact same team as last years.

I just don’t think that is what is going to happen.  Engvall will be back, but Simmonds, Clifford and Mikheyev won’t be.  Kampf will be, Kase won’t be.   Sandin absolutely won’t get traded, and it will be idiotic to go cheap with goalies at this point.  Muzzin, Kerfoot and Holl will not be back.

I think the Leafs will keep their same core 5 players, but I believe we will be in for an unexpected amount of change. I just don’t see how Kyle Dubas and Brendan Shanahan can risk their careers and the final two-years of Auston Matthews  contract  on B-level goaltending and more of the exact same.