The Toronto Maple Leafs held a practice this week where Timothy Liljegren was not listed in the top-four and it immediately started up rumours that the Leafs would trade him.
While the Toronto Maple Leafs do sometimes make terrible decisions, I can assure you that they will not be trading Timothy Liljegren, as doing so would be a mistake for several obvious reasons.
The first, and most obvious, is that the Leafs have a very old blue-line. Rielly, OEL, Tanev and McCabe are all 31 or older. Additionally, the Leafs have no other NHL ready young players with upside, and the players they would conceivably use if they moved Liljegren - Simon Benoit and Jani Hakanpaa - are not good and have much worse numbers than Liljegren.
Statistically, Liljegren should be the Leafs number-three, and while it is true that the team itself seems to be unaware of what they have in Liljegren, I highly doubt that they are going to trade their only NHL regular defenseman who can move the puck and is young enough to still have upside.
The Toronto Maple Leafs can't trade Timothy Liljegren, and they won't
But beyond that, why would the Leafs move on from a player they just re-signed, and who they have spent years developing, and who has excellent NHL numbers?
People love to just say "Liljegren is not a top-four player" but that just isn't true. Last year, his most common linemate was Auston Matthews, and Matthews did better with Liljegren on the ice than without him.
In the last three years, with Liljegren on the ice the Leafs have won his minutes by the following scores: 57-42, 50-31, 39-35. His expected goals ratings for those years are 60%, 53% and 53%.
Those are excellent numbers. When Liljegren plays, the Leafs are a better team. He is so underrated it is incredible, and the evidence doesn't lie. One reason he is not more respected is because Keefe kept scratching him in the playoffs. However, Keefe was the one making the mistake - Liljegren deserved to play, and it's a shame that Keefe's bad decision continues to haunt how Liljegren is perceived. (stats naturalstattrick.com).
Another is that in the NHL, players who do not score a lot or throw huge hits have a hardtime captivating the imaginations of fans and coaches. Time and again, the players who get underrated are those who put up solid 5v5 on-ice numbers in an unspectacular way.
Liljegren is an excellent player and the Leafs would be crazy to get rid of him just as he's coming into his own. He is only 25. I'm sorry, but you don't move 25 year-old puck-moving defenseman who already have a history of being a solid NHL regular, pretty much ever, let alone for cap-reasons.
The Leafs won't, can't, wouldn't dare to trade him at this point.