With the NHL Trade Deadline just days away and only two games remaining before Friday's 3:00 p.m. ET cutoff, the Toronto Maple Leafs are increasingly being viewed as a team to watch on the trade market.
Facing long odds of making the playoffs, the club has seen a growing number of players surface on NHL insider trade boards in recent days. Combined with some late roster shuffling, the activity has fueled speculation that Toronto could be preparing to make multiple moves as the deadline approaches.
Multiple Maple Leafs Named in Trade Buzz as Roster Moves Fuel Speculation
The Maple Leafs' four-game losing streak since returning from the Olympic break has only heightened the speculation that many players might be moved as the trade deadline nears. Unrestricted free agents Bobby McMann and Scott Laughton have been frequently discussed as trade candidates, especially as the team's losing streak has pushed the Leafs' management into sell mode.
Non-rental defensemen Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Brandon Carlo, and, to a lesser extent, Simon Benoit have also been mentioned as trade possibilities. Just recently, Nicolas Roy was added to the list.
Those names have littered the trade boards of NHL insiders. Ekman-Larsson, Laughton, McMann, and Roy appeared on the trade board list of Sportsnet's Nick Kypreos. The Leafs had the second-most players named behind the St. Louis Blues (5).
Ekman-Larsson, McMann, Laughton, Benoit, and Calle Jarnkrok were named by the Athletic's Chris Johnston as candidates to be moved, while the Maple Leafs were well-represented on TSN's Trade Bait Board with six players mentioned.
Before Wednesday's contest against the New Jersey Devils, the Leafs made some roster moves that suggested a trade might be imminent. McMann, Laughton, and Ekman-Larsson were all healthy scratches for "roster management purposes."
Jacob Quillan wasn't officially recalled from the Toronto Marlies, but TSN's Mark Masters reported he was in New Jersey as a potential emergency fill-in should Toronto make a transaction.
As the NHL Trade Deadline approaches and deals begin to unfold across the league, trade chatter surrounding the Maple Leafs has picked up. WIth the market beginning to take shape and Toronto starting to shuffle pieces on its roster, the signs point to potential deals looming.
For a team enduring an underachieving season, the focus now shifts to whether the Leafs can turn disappointment into opportunity; restocking the roster with younger talent or draft capital, and perhaps finding a silver lining before the campaign comes to a close.