The Toronto Maple Leafs Face Tough Roster Decisions

The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Montreal Canadiens 5-1 on Monday.

Following the win, the Toronto Maple Leafs made some cuts to their roster.

There are now two more preseason games to go. Fans should expect to see some bubble players get a final look tonight, with something close to the opening night roster tomorrow.

Due to injuries throughout the lineup, Toronto has more roster spots available now than were expected at the start of training camp. These available roster spots will give some players an opportunity they otherwise would not have had.

This past Monday, the Toronto Maple Leafs assigned ten players to the Toronto Marlies in the AHL. All ten were not going to make the Maple Leafs lineup. The Marlies training camp just started, so it made sense to give these players as much time as possible with the Marlies coaching staff.

Toronto Maple Leafs Make More Roster Cuts

Fans should expect Toronto to make more cuts on Saturday following Friday night’s game in Detroit and before their final preseason game Saturday night.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have Nick Robertson, Denis Malgin, Kyle Clifford, Potus Holmberg, Adam Gaudette, Nick Abruzzese, Alex Steeves, Joey Anderson and Wayne Simmonds battling for two open roster spots.

Steeves, Robertson, Abruzzese, and Holmberg can all get sent to the AHL without needing to clear waivers. As good as Robertson has been in the preseason, his waiver status might make him a casualty. With Toronto’s history of losing players through waivers, they will try to avoid it as much as possible.

Then again, they are already likely to start the season without John Tavares and might just decide to dress their best roster, which would have Nick Robertson on. He’s had an excellent preseason and has made the team on merit.

Sending Gaudette, Simmonds, Clifford, or Malgin through waivers will result in at least one of them getting claimed by another team. Toronto is in a very tricky situation, but it’s a good competitive situation to have.

Increasing the pressure is Zach Aston-Reese, who is at camp on a professional tryout (PTO). Taking a player like Aston-Reese for a leagu-minimum contract is a no-brainer and he’s also expected to make the team.

Fans will have a clearer picture of what Toronto’s opening night lineup will look like before Saturday night’s game against the Red Wings. Toronto will make its final cuts on Sunday or Monday prior to the start of the regular season.