It’s safe to say the Toronto Maple Leafs have some work to do in the offseason.
With Ryan O’Reilly most likely testing free agency, the Toronto Maple Leafs will need to fill his spot in their lineup and I believe I have found the best option moving forward.
With Ivan Provorov being traded, it is clear that the Philadelphia Flyers are in rebuild mode, and one of the names floating around that could be on their way out of Philly is Scott Laughton.
Laughton was drafted by the Flyers in 2012 and has spent his entire career with the team.
Why The Toronto Maple Leafs Should Aquire Scott Laughton
On Saturday night during Sportsnet’s headlines segment, Elliotte Friedman stated that the 29-year-old has been a name popping up and I think the Leafs should jump at the opportunity to get him.
The price may be steep but I believe Laughton is worth it. He is an excellent two-way center and is signed for another three years at a three-million-dollar cap hit. This past season, he put up a career high 43 points in 78 games on a Flyers team that was nowhere near the playoffs.
Laughton was also fifth in points on Philadelphia, where he averaged just over 18 minutes a night.. (all stats hockeydb.com).
I believe that if O’Reilly does not end up returning to the Leafs, Laughton would be a great replacement. He is younger, much cheaper, and is coming off of his best season of his career on a trainwreck of a Flyers team. Laughton can also kill penalties well, scoring three shorthanded goals and seven points without having the man advantage.
It has been a few years since the Flyers were in the playoffs, but during Philly’s run in the 2019-20 playoffs, Laughton was a key contributor, putting up nine points in 15 playoff games.
With Laughton being good in many ways, it’ll mean that he will have a heavy price attached to him in order to acquire his services, but is it a move the Leafs should make?
Personally I think it is. He would bring so much to this Toronto Maple Leafs team. From killing penalties, winning faceoffs, putting up points in the playoffs and his cheap contract, the Oakville native would be an ideal player for the Toronto Maple Leafs.