The Toronto Maple Leafs have an abundance of forwards with very little roster spots. So, now, according to The Fourth Period, Dakota Joshua finds his name at No. 23 on the early season trade bait list.
Dakota Joshua appears to be on the trade block
It's not surprising that Joshua's name would wind up on a trade bait list. The Maple Leafs brought in a ton of news forwards who can play at the NHL level, and with him dealing with an injury at the start of the season, he has essentially been replaced.
Since returning to the roster, he has suited up for three games, including the most recent one, where he played with Gavin McKenna against the Montreal Canadiens. The issue is he isn't a needle mover in the lineup. He doesn't bring much of anything; he rarely plays physically, and he doesn't produce on the scoresheet. He was replaced by Zack MacEwen, who has played himself into an everyday roster spot and is doing it at a fraction of the cost of Joshua.
That's not to say that Joshua isn't a serviceable NHL player, because he is; just not on the Maple Leafs. There are, however, other teams in the NHL that will see him as that, and whether that is a playoff team looking to add or a team willing to take on his cap hit with an additional draft pick attached, we won't know until the trade happens.
Pagnotta believes Joshua will be a cap casualty
David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period believes that Joshua is going to be a cap casualty for Toronto. Which isn't overly surprising considering that he makes $3.25 million and is signed for another season after the 2026-27 season.
""With a plethora of forwards on the roster, Toronto is going to have to make space later in the season, and Joshua's name has already been circulating across the NHL. He has another year left on his contract, and he may ultimately be a cap casualty if the Leafs need to make other moves.""
At this time, there are no teams formally linked to the 30-year-old. But again, he just returned from injury and is getting his feet back under him. If he can become a consistent member of the lineup for a stretch of time, a team or two may come calling to acquire his services.
It is important to remember that this trade is going to be one of two things. Either a trade where they dump his cap hit for a draft pick or a deal where he is a throw-in to make the money work, similar to Miles Wood in the Kirill Marchenko trade.
It is very unlikely that Toronto comes out on top of a trade like this unless it is a huge trade that he is involved in. But that isn't the point; they need to make sure they can still add throughout the season, and they need cap space to do so. Which means he is almost certainly going to be a cap casualty.
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