Leafs of Change

By: Mike Rifkin

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result. On Saturday night the Toronto Maple Leafs were defeated by the two time defending Stanley Cup Champion Tampa Bay Lightning 2-1 in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Maple Leafs have not won a playoff series since 2004, the longest current streak in the NHL. Every year when the Leafs lose there is a different excuse last year when they blew a 3-1 series lead to the Montreal Canadiens it was all about Carey Price, this year was they played the Lightning. If the Leafs don’t want to make changes in the front office or on the coaching staff that is fine, but then there has to be a change on the roster. 

Forwards Auston Matthews (14.3%), John Taveras (13.5%), Mitch Marner (13.4%), and William Nylander (8.5%) account for 49.7% of the Maple Leafs salary cap situation. Defensemen Jake Muzzin (6.9%), Morgan Reilly ( 6.1%) and TJ Brodie (6.1%) account for 19.1%. That is 68.8 % of their salary cap is tied up in seven players, it is very hard to create a deep roster this way. So here is the thing Taveras and the three defensemen all have no trade clauses so they are not going anywhere. Auston Matthews just scored 60 goals and will probably win the Hart Trophy as league MVP so there is no way you can trade him. But if the Leafs don’t get there act together and actually win a round in the playoffs could Matthews request a trade like Jack Eichel did for the Sabres? That leaves Marner and Nylander I go back and forth on these two and I think I would move Nylander. Now Marner and Matthews have a great chemistry together and if the Leafs consider moving Taveras to wing they could include Nylander in a trade that could bring them in a number two center behind Matthews. The other reason for trading Nylander is his 6.9 million dollars is easier for a team to take on rather than Marner’s 10.9 million dollars. This could help the Maple Leafs bring back goaltender Jack Campbell who had a very good season for them and is an unrestricted free agent. 

If I was Kyle Dubas this offseason I would trade Nylander and Alexander Kerfoot not because they are bad players but you have to change something with this team, they cannot keep getting eliminated in the first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.