The Toronto Maple Leafs recently signed Nick Robertson to a one-year deal, but it doesn't guarantee he'll be with the team much longer.
Are we giving way too much attention to Nick Robertson right now? Is he a player who was only a good junior player, or is it possible that he'll turn into a top-six winger? If you look at this junior stats, you'd assume he'd be the next great goal-scorer on this team, but instead, he's playing bottom-six minutes nightly.
Has he been wrongly cast this entire time or are Sheldon Keefe and Craig Berube right that Robertson is a bottom-six player and not a legitimate scorer? It's a weird thing to follow because the 23-year-old scored 15 goals last year, despite being near the bottom in ice-time. He still finds a way to score but can't be trusted in a playoff series,
I feel like Robertson has the spotlight on him, because firstly he plays on the Leafs and secondly, his brother is just so good. His brother Jason is two years older and scored 46 goals and 109 points at the same age that Nick is right now. With so much pressure to live up his older brother, Nick is being treated like a player that he may never become.
However now that Robertson is settled, it doesn't mean that he's going to spend a long time in the blue-and-white, but instead could be destined for a trade. Sportsnet's Elliot Friedman suggested that Pittsburgh could be a destination, which makes sense as Penguins' GM Kyle Dubas is very familiar with his talents.
Robertson could be traded before the season starts
Roberston makes so much sense on Pittsburgh because they're headed for a rebuild and could audition him in the top-six with Evgeni Malkin or Sidney Crosby. By all accounts, it feels like Pittsburgh is trying to get rid of Rickard Rakell and Bryan Rust which would open up space in the team's top-six. One of those players would naturally fit well in Toronto as well, so there could be a world where Toronto trades Robertson in a package that includes Rakell or Rust.
Personally, I would still prefer to try Robertson in the Leafs top-six instead of trading him right away, but Craig Berube sees him as a bottom-six forward, then he's not useful in Toronto. We've seen way too many games with Robertson in the bottom-six to understand that he's not fit for that role. He's a skilled winger who should be given an opportunity to score goals with other skilled players instead of being stuck in a grinding third-line.
With barely any cap-space available, the Leafs are most likely still looking at trade options this offseason, but I don't think the answer is Robertson. Instead, the organization should be focused on trying to get the most out of his $1.85M salary, instead of dumping him to another team.