The Toronto Maple Leafs Need to Trade Calle Jarkrok: 3 Potential Destinations
Toronto Maple Leafs forward Calle Jarnkrok could be traded soon. Here are three trade destinations
Toronto Maple Leafs forward Calle Jarnkrok was placed on Long-Term Injured Reserve (LTIR) at the beginning of the season, so he'll miss the first 11 games but he could be traded before we know it.
If you're looking at the Toronto Maple Leafs roster right now, where does Jankrok fit?
The Leafs fourth-line looks set and can't get any more expensive, while Nick Robertson is currently locked into the third-line right wing position. At $2.1M for Jarnkrok versus $875K for Robertson, I'd have a hard time putting Jarnkrok back in that spot.
The Leafs barely have a penny to spare when it comes to the salary-cap right now, so adding Jarnkrok to the picture gets very tricky right now.
The Leafs could move Timothy Liljegren's $3M contract to make room, but I'd much rather have defensive help over a 33-year-old depth right winger, so I doubt that happens.
I don't have anything against what Jarnkrok brings but in a salary-cap world, you can't afford to have multiple players making $2M plus in the bottom-six, especially when you have better forwards who are less expensive. At this point, Jarnkrok's injury has forced him to become the odd-man out and he's bound to get traded ASAP.
As such, here are three trade destinations for Calle Jarnkrok.
No. 1: Buffalo Sabres
Not only could the Sabres use another depth forward, but they have a lot of cap-space to afford him.
In addition to cap-space and need, they have all of their draft picks for the next three years, and more, that they could afford shipping a sixth or seventh-rounder for him.
At this point in his career, Jarnkrok isn't going to fetch more than a late draft pick or a C-level prospect. He'll still give any team 10-15 goals and solid defensive minutes, but he can't fit a Leafs roster where they're paying four forward $45M combined.
The Sabres are once again most likely to miss the playoffs, but a move like this would be very beneficial for them. Jarnkrok would add some depth to a lifeless bottom-six and who knows, could actually play top-six minutes on this roster.
Not only would it be a good move for both sides, I'm sure Jarnkrok would also appreciate it, as he'd only have to move 1.5 hours down the QEW.
No. 2: Utah Hockey Club
Utah also has a ton of cap-space and if they think they're a legitimate team after a hot start, they may be willing to make a trade.
After spending the past few years playing in a collegiate stadium, the relocated Arizona Coyotes are now the brand new Utah Hockey Club.
With a sold-out building every night, the vibes are at an all-time high for this franchise and the play on the ice has reflected that. At this rate, the team is projected to be a playoff team, and after what we've seen with recent expansion teams, not only wouldn't it be shocking if the team made the playoffs, but it wouldn't surprise me if they won a Stanley Cup.
I know that's crazy, but I think Utah could be intrigued to make a ton of trades this year to give their brand new fans even more to cheer for.
Alex Kerfoot is Utah's third-line centre, and is very familliar with Jarnkrok, having played together in the past, so they could look at a reunion. Utah has a few young players on the roster, so another veteran could benefit the bunch.
The Leafs are essentially just looking for a salary-dump so even a seventh-rounder in return for a salary-dump could be all it takes to bring Jarnkrok to Utah.
No. 3: Calgary Flames
The Flames have roughly $17M in cap-space, so there could be an opportunity for an even bigger deal here.
If I'm the Flames, I'd be looking at something that not only includes Jarnkrok, but maybe even Timothy Liljegren, David Kampf and/or a high-end prospect.
With so much cap-space, the team can abord a lot of money and if I'm the Leafs, I'm looking directly at Nazem Kadri in return. If the Flames don't retain any money, the Leafs could make something work with a Jarnkrok/Liljegren deal, but in a perfect world, they would still retain a lot of his contract.
Toronto is clearly lacking at the 3C position right now and I wouldn't want anyone in the NHL more than Kadri. I don't care that he makes $7M because John Tavares' contract comes off the books next year anyway, so that contract won't hurt as much as you'd think. (Though they are the same age).
Kadri is still good enough to play 2C as well if needed, but a three-headed monster of Auston Matthews, John Tavares and Nazem Kadri would be amazing.
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Maybe I'm too optimistic that the Flames would actually make a blockbuster trade with their former GM Brad Treliving, but a boy can dream. Fingers crossed that something big like this could happen because if Kadri came back to the Leafs, I'd be extremely excited.