The Toronto Maple Leafs should try very hard to trade Max Domi, but if no one will take him then they seriouslyneed to consider waiving, or buying him out.
Domi fleeced the Toronto Maple Leafs in the summer by signing a four-year $15M deal ($3.75M AAV) and the organization surely regrets that decision, which almost everyone else knew, at the time, was a bad decision.
The last name "Domi" is synonymous with the history of the Leafs, but that should only be associated with Tie, not Max.
As much as I can appreciate Domi's tough demeanor and ability to stick up for his teammates, he's not living up to his contract right now. 3 goals in 43 games is just not good enough for someone who is as naturally talented as he is.
To make matters worse, the Leafs cannot score, and part of the reason for that is that in order to make Max Domi effective, they have to take offensive zone faceoffs away from Marner and Matthews and give them to Domi, which ultimately has a negative effect on the team.
Maple Leafs Need to Get Rid of Max Domi
I know that Domi still has three full years of his deal after this season, but the team needs to consider putting him on waivers or buying out his contract right now. At $3.75M, he's dead weight on the third line of a team without cap space.
I still think the team should try him beside Matthews again where he was incredibly successful last season. This would allow them to split up their three franchise players onto each line and make them a lot harder to play against.
Currently on his seventh team in 10 years, Domi is a replacement-level forward who is one of the NHL's most overrated player. For reasons that remain obscure and inexplicable, the Leafs saw something in him last year that his big 9 goal season was worth $3.75M AAV for four years, and some pretty significant no-trade protection.
I hate to disrespect a player who I think is a great person, but Domi has the ability to do more. He has so much skill, yet he can't find a way to score and he needs to get to the net. Instead of thinking pass-first, Domi needs to drive the offense himself like he's done in the past.
If the Leafs want to make a serious push in the playoffs, they cannot rely on Domi to provide depth offense and should seriously look at buying him out, or putting him on waivers, because they could use his money much more efficiently.