Reports indicate that the Toronto Maple Leafs are looking at trading Timothy Liljegren, which is one of the dumbest moves this team can make.
Besides trading Mitch Marner, I can't think of a dumber trade rumor that has been talked about for the past six months. I understand that the salary cap may a factor in this decision, since Liljegren makes $3M AAV, but the Toronto Maple Leafs should not move on from him.
Why does Liljegren get all of this hate, when he's one of the team's best defenseman? Is it because his season career-high is 23 points and we value defensive points too much? Or is it because he's a former first-round pick and we want him to be a top-pair player or he's a bust? If I had to guess, I would say that most people, even those in the actual NHL, don't properly respect effective players that do not hit or score a lot.
I can't really figure out why the organization would trade him since he's 25-years-old, and only has 196 career NHL games under his belt. The old saying is that you can't judge a defenseman until they've played 300 games and I'd stick to that mentality with Liljegren. But even with that old cliché, Liljegren's 196 games have been extremely successful by any standard - for three straight seasons, the team has won his minutes when he's on the ice.
Trading Liljegren Would Be a Big Mistake
If the team didn't believe in him in the first place, then why give him a $3M AAV salary? Why go into the season with him and then try to trade him immediately, when he should be a big part of this team?
I can understand the hard love from a new coach, but it shouldn't result in a trade.
If you're looking to trade someone, trade David Kampf or Calle Janrkrok because the Leafs have players already in their organization that are better and cheaper than them. In Liljegren's case, there isn't a single defenseman better than him, who can come in and be a more valuable addition.
The Leafs just played two games with a Simon Benoit/ Conor Timmins pairing, which was not successful at all and should never be seen again. Clearly the Leafs do not have six defenseman better than Liljegre, they probably don't even have three.
What happens if Chris Tanev, Morgan Rielly, Jake McCabe or Oliver Ekman-Larsson gets injured? Wouldn't you rather have Liljegren there as your seventh defenseman in case of injury, instead of a less developed player on the Marlies? Also, do we really think that Connor Timmins and Simon Benoit are reliable enough for 82 games (and playoffs) that Liljegren can't force his way into one of those spots?
Just look what happened when the Leafs traded Rasmus Sandin to the Washington Capitals. He was a mistcast defenseman with the Leafs, but once he was traded to the nation's capital, he's continued to be an everyday defenseman, even playing regular power-play minutes on the second unit.
If Liljegren wants out and his presence is going to cause a distraction, then sure, ship him away. But realistically, you're probably going to lose any trade you make with him, so I'd much rather keep him for insurance purposes then hope that this defensive unit can stay healthy for the next six months.