Heading into the 2025 NHL offseason, one of the most important concerns for the Toronto Maple Leafs was what they would do if superstar winger Mitch Marner would leave the organization. After all, Marner had been a dominant force both offensively and defensively for the Leafs for almost the past decade. So losing such a valuable piece would be detrimental to any team that was looking to contend.
Many anticipated that if Marner would ultimately leave Toronto, the Maple Leafs would respond by acquiring a potential replacement or two via trade or the free agent market to make the loss much more bearable. But no matter what move they would pursue, the Leafs would no doubt be a little weaker than they were last season.
However, now near the halfway point of the offseason, Toronto has failed miserably in finding the proper replacement for Marner. Among players that were available in the market come July 1, the Leafs missed out on top free agents in Brock Boeser, Nikolaj Ehlers and Mikael Granlund. On top of that, key role players that could add valuable secondary scoring such as Corey Perry, Brandon Tanev and Andrew Mangiapane.
In the end, the Leafs managed to sign Travis Boyd, Benoit-Olivier Groulx, Dakota Mermis, Michael Pezzetta and Vinni Lettieri through free agency and acquired Nicolas Roy, Matias Maccelli and Henry Thrun through trades. If they believe that any of those moves would even move the needle as a potential replacement for Marner, they must truly be dreaming.
Yes, the Leafs did a great job in re-signing John Tavares to a team-friendly deal along with locking in Matthew Knies for another six years on a value contract to give them some flexibility in adding and improving the roster. But there hasn’t been one transaction that’s even close to answering the void left by Marner. The last thing one would want to see is the Leafs rushing Easton Cowan’s development and hoping that he becomes the immediate replacement for the star winger.
There is still time for the Leafs to still land that key piece, but it sure won’t be coming from free agency based on what’s left in the market. As a result, it will need to come from the trade route. Whether it be rumored players such as Nazem Kadri, Erik Karlsson, Rickard Rakell, or Bryan Rust, or perhaps even someone totally unexpected, Toronto will need to do something to instill confidence that the team is still a legitimate contender.
As a result, unless they manage to pull off an impactful trade or two in the coming weeks to round out the roster, Leafs fans should prepare to face the reality that they may be worse off heading into the 2025-26 NHL season. And with the defending Stanley Cup Champions Florida Panthers keeping their dominating winning team more or less intact, the task for the Leafs to hoist the Cup would become that much more daunting.