News of the Toronto Maple Leafs officially hanging up the “for sale” sign should not cause any surprise to anyone. After risible back-to-back losses in Florida, it’s evident that the Maple Leafs have nowhere to go but the bottom of the standings.
That impression has become so obvious now that there’s no denying the Leafs are going to sell at this year’s NHL trade deadline. One anonymous league source told RG Media’s James Murphy that the two consecutive losses were enough to trigger a sell-off.
“That’s it; the ‘For Sale’ sign is up in Toronto now, but they’re going to try and buy a bit too.”
The comments make sense, but also seem mildly contradictory. Yes, it makes total sense to sell, but buying? Well, it seems the sell-off won’t be just dumping impending UFAs and RFAs. The idea will be to get something back to help the team spin a mild retool, much like another Atlantic Division rival did last season.
Maple Leafs looking to model sell-off after Boston Bruins
The source expounded on the plans to sell by detailing how the Maple Leafs plan to model their sell-off this season after what the Boston Bruins did last year.
The Bruins were in a very similar situation as the Maple Leafs at this time last year. The club had sunk to the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings and proceeded to sell off everything they could, including Brandon Carlo to Toronto.
Now, it seems that the same philosophy is what the anonymous source told Murphy.
“I can tell you that it was well known that if the Leafs came out of the break like this - not just the two losses but the way they did, in my opinion, not interested - [Brad] Treliving had let it be known that he would be really listening and ready to sell. But I also think they make it like a soft sell and try to do it as the Boston Bruins did with them last year.”
The goal, it seems, is to engage in a “light rebuild” to help reset the roster and get back into playoff contention like the Bruins did this year.
Boston has an arguably thinner roster than the Maple Leafs do this season. So, adding the right sorts of pieces, like a solid prospect or two, and landing a decent first-round pick could be doable.
It’s also worth pointing out that, if the Maple Leafs sink low enough and enter NHL Draft Lottery territory, they could regain their first-round pick this season. It’s a bit of a long shot, but things might just work out for the Maple Leafs in the end.