Michael Traikos of The Hockey News: Mitch Marner, John Tavares, Morgan Rielly, Auston Matthews, and William Nylander all have no-movement clauses with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Calle Jarnkrok, David Kampf and Jake McCabe have modified no-trade clauses.
You’d have to convince Marner that he is the problem and to waive his no-move. Good luck. Tavares has a year left. Rielly’s contract expires after 2030. The Maple Leafs core isn’t going anywhere.
Firing Sheldon Keefe is the easiest decision but possibly the most costly with his extension not even kicked in yet. The Leafs need to hire someone like Craig Berube or Dean Evason or even associate coach Guy Boucher.
The Maple Leafs need to find a real partner for Rielly. They should have enough cap space to take a run at Brady Skjei or Brett Pesce.
The Maple Leafs should look at re-signing forward Tyler Bertuzzi and goaltender Ilya Samsonov.
The Leafs need to find a way to convince Marner to waive his no-movement clause. At times it looked like he could use a change of scenery. Teams that could use a star player like Marner to help sell tickets include Utah, the Columbus Blue Jackets, the Seattle Kraken, and the Ottawa Senators. The Leafs should be looking for depth, leadership, and culture-changing intangibles.
Steve Simmons of the Toronto Sun: The Toronto Maple Leafs have an impressive regular season record under Brendan Shanahan but the playoff success hasn’t followed. He’s been with the Maple Leafs for the past 10 years and they haven’t been a Stanley Cup contender.
They have lost in the first round in seven of the past eight years. They’ve failed to score when it mattered most.
Do the changes start at the top with Shanahan? Big changes on the ice won’t be easy given their salary cap situation.
Mitch Marner and John Tavares are in the final year of their deals at a combined $22 million with no-movement clauses. Will one or both be asked/pushed to waive? Both will likely say no.
The Leafs need to find one or two puck-moving defensemen, a defenseman who can shoot, a third-line center, and maybe a goaltender.
