As soon as the NHL's roster freeze caused by the Winter Olympics is lifted, there might be a flurry of moves and the Toronto Maple Leafs could be involved. But the latest report from insider Elliotte Friedman might not be what fans want to hear right now.
On Tuesday's episode of Oilers NOW with Bob Stauffer, Elliotte Friedman gave the latest on all he's hearing about the Leafs' trade deadline plans and what fans can expect.
"I think they're going to sell. I think they're going to talk about McMann, and I tihnk they're going to talk about Laughton for sure. And I think they'll listen on some other things, but I don't know how much deeper than that it's going to get," Friedman said.
In a vacuum, that all makes sense. Bobby McMann and Scott Laughton are two pending unrestricted free agents who playoff teams will want because of their low cap hits and what they bring on the ice. McMann more of a gutsy scorer that might just perform well in the playoffs, and Laughton will be that reliable force down the middle in the bottom six.
But, Friedman mentioning that he doesn't quite know if the Leafs will do anything beyond that is a little troubling.
Leafs are expected to sell, but might not tear it down enough for some fans
If general manager Brad Treliving gets decent returns for both McMann and Laughton, there can't be too much to complain about. Those two players are the biggest threats to be massive missed opportunities if the Leafs don't trade or re-sign them and they walk in free agency.
But, with other players potentially moved like Matias Maccelli, Calle Jarnkrok, Nicolas Roy, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Brandon Carlo, and Simon Benoit (so a lot of them), the Leafs have a chance to truly turn the page and re-tool in the biggest possible way; moving away from players who currently make up this mediocre roster.
When it comes to McMann and Laughton, though, is it possible to get a couple of first-round picks back for those players? Friedman weighs in.
"I think they'd like to." Friedman said. "You know, to me, it just comes to, they'd like to but there's a couple things here. Number one, you need demand and I think for McMann and Laughton there will be some demand. You need a bunch of teams competing to throw you over. You know, the biggest challenge I've heard, is look at all the teams that are contenders that have already given up their 2026 first."
It's true. The Avalanche, Lightning, Hurricanes, Wild, Stars, Golden Knights, and the Oilers do not have their first-round pick for the 2026 NHL Draft -- and those are the teams you want to try to sell the two pending free agents to. That leaves the likes of the Red Wings, Canadiens, Sabres, Penguins, Bruins, Islanders, and so on as the teams who do still have those picks; and it's uncertain if they want to move them considering where they are in their competitive cycle.
We won't be able to see any of these moves happen until the roster freeze is lifted on February 22. Here's hoping that we see more moves than just the obvious two selling trades that Treliving can make before the March 6 trade deadline.