Tanev for Bertuzzi not nearly enough for Auston Matthews Prime

The Toronto Maple Leafs did not do enough this summer to capitalize on Auston Matthews being in the prime of is career.

The Toronto Maple Leafs failed to get a top goalie or top defenseman to help improve their team. They were able to add a good, not great, mid-range defensive option in Chris Tanev, but they also lost Tyler Bertuzzi.

Swapping in Tanev for Bertuzzi might make them slightly better, but it doesn't really make them significantly better.

And other than that, they didn't make a single impact move all summer.

Tanev for Bertuzzi not nearly enough for Auston Matthews Prime

This really is a shame because I can tell you, with full and absolute confidence, before the season has even started, that the Toronto Maple Leafs are not good enough to win the Stanley Cup or compete for the President's Trophy.

Too many things need to go right for that to happen:

Marner and Nylander have career years. Tavares, Tanev and Rielly avoid decline. Matthews repeats his season from last year. Joseph Woll stays healthy and is a legit NHL starter. Easton Cowan challenges for the Calder, and the team manages to avoid injury, while one of their young players turns into a superstar out of nowhere.

Hey, if all that happens, I'll be the happiest guy in the world. I'm hoping for it to happen. I want to be wrong.

But what Leafs are going with an inexperienced, highly injury prone goalie tandem, and the oldest, most average blue-line in the NHL while hoping for no decline from all their 30 year olds, and that at least one of Knies/Liljegren/Robertson/Woll becomes a star. Can that work?

Here's a handy checklist for the Leafs in order for them to compete:

1) Goalies have a top 10 save percentage at the end of the season

2) The blue-line turns out to be a team strength

3) Rielly, Tanev and Tavares avoid significant decine,

4) one of their young players becomes a star

5) Matthews, Marner and Nylander all stay healthy and turn in elite seasons.

Can they pull off all of those? Any of them? Can they compete if they don't? It just seems to me that the Leafs are asking for too many unlikely things to happen in order for them to be a top team.

And because of that, I think their GM failed. The Leafs have a 27 year old Mitch Marner and a 28 year old Auston Matthews. This is the year they should be all-in. This was the year for high-risk/high-reward management, but this management group has zero appetite for risk.

Ironically, playing it safe is the biggest risk of all. Think of it like gambling: You cannot make any money just betting on favorites. The payouts don't make it worthwhile and one upset destroys your bankroll. The Leafs have already been done in by their lack of risk taking, and all that's left is to go through the motions until Keith Pelley brings in someone new to run this team.

All the Leafs did between losing to Boston in May and playing Montreal next week is add Chris Tanev at the cost of Tyler Bertuzzi. That wasn't nearly enough for a team with one of the best players of all-time smack dab in the middle of his prime. For shame!