On Friday, it was announced that the Toronto Maple Leafs will call up forward Miles Wood from the AHL's Toronto Marlies. The 31-year-old was acquired in the blockbuster deal that sent Matthew Knies to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for Kirill Marchenko.
F Miles Wood has been recalled from the Toronto Marlies (AHL).
— Leafs PR (@LeafsPR) October 9, 2026
Wood is best known as a bottom-six forward with consistent 25- to 30-point upside. Injuries have limited the Buffalo native in recent years, costing him 226 games over the last eight seasons, including all but 91 games over the last two seasons split between the Colorado Avalanche and Columbus.
He will have to carve out a role in Toronto and it won't be easy. General manager John Chyka spent much of the offseason adding bottom-of-the-lineup depth in Nick Paul, Colton Sissons, Teddy Blueger, Brandon Duhaime and Zack MacEwen.
The recall may be tied to injury news that has not yet been revealed. It is not clear whether a forward is hurt, but defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson is expected to be sidelined after falling awkwardly and landing on his head in Thursday's loss to the Vegas Golden Knights.
Wood joins MacEwen and Nick Blankenburg as extra skaters, and more clarity on the roster should come at Toronto's practice in Vegas later Friday as the team prepares to continue its road trip Saturday against the Colorado Avalanche. If the Leafs do lose a forward, Wood could slot into bottom-six minutes.
What should the Maple Leafs do with Miles Wood?
His demotion to the Marlies was somewhat surprising for an 11-year NHL veteran who has been good enough to play in the league for years. If Toronto doesn't plan to use him, the logical alternative is to trade him to a team in need of depth. The Leafs have all three of their salary retention slots open and could retain salary to get a valuable asset back rather than let him sit in the minors.
If Toronto keeps him, the best approach is to play him as the bottom-six forward he is. He could come in and play heavy minutes at a better NHL standard than other options like Bo Groulx, who is just 26 years old but has never played more than 45 games in an NHL season yet.
Colorado targeted Wood in free agency in 2023 for good reason, as a valuable piece of its bottom six, and he played in 20 playoff games with the Avalanche. He could bring that level of experience to a Toronto lineup looking to get back into the playoff picture.
The Leafs have several ways to go with Wood, and the bigger question is how he can help them rebound from a tough Thursday loss in which they blew a 3-0 lead to the Golden Knights.
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