After the 2023-24 season ended, all the fingers were pointing at Mitch Marner being traded by the Toronto Maple Leafs. Now, almost two weeks into the 2024 offseason, that doesn’t appear to be the case at all. Instead, there’s been three Maple Leafs linked to trade rumors of late and all is quiet on trading any of the team’s core players.
Nick Robertson, Timothy Liljegren and David Kampf have had their names mixed in among trade speculation early on this summer. General manager Brad Treliving is known for being very involved in trade conversations, however to this point of the offseason, besides signing a few free-agents, Treliving has been very quiet. Perhaps, this is just the calm before the storm?
Let’s start with Robertson, as it sounds like he’s the only one out of the Maple Leafs’ potential trade candidates who wants out. After a rocky relationship with former head coach Sheldon Keefe last season where Keefe couldn’t trust Robertson’s defensive flaws to give him consistent minutes, the former second-round pick has apparently informed the team he’d prefer to play elsewhere next season. According to The Athletic’s Chris Johnston, Robertson has no intentions of signing a new contract this offseason.
The case to move Robertson is based on the fact he doesn’t want to play in Toronto. Even with a new head coach in Craig Berube, perhaps the player doesn’t necessarily see a great fit with a high-intense defensive-minded coach behind the bench. Or, the frustration has mounted from several years with a number of stressors, including untimely injuries, getting sent down to start the past two seasons for cap reasons, or being taken out of the lineup when he felt he should be playing top-nine minutes. If Robertson is going to hold true to his request, you can probably expect to see a trade coming before training camp. Berube needs to jump right in and get the ship moving as he won’t have time to massage relationships with players who don’t want to put on the Maple Leafs uniform.
The case to keep Robertson or convince him to stay is solely around opportunity. Tyler Bertuzzi has moved on to Chicago, and with limited depth at left wing, Robertson has a shot to play top-six minutes next season. This could also mean consistent minutes on the second power-play unit, which is something the 23-year-old forward has had to scratch and claw for since joining the team. Robertson would have to battle it out with Matthew Knies and Bobby McMann at training camp for top-six minutes, and he’ll have to fend off Easton Cowan and Fraser Minten when it comes to a depth role.
My prediction on the Robertson case is that the player is eventually traded for another forward who has some versatility to play the wing and down the middle.
Liljegren Linked to Trade Despite New Contract
One of the many orders of business Treliving took care of this summer was inking Liljegren to a two-year, $6 million contract and while many would feel his contract should be a security blanket for the next two seasons, that’s apparently not the case at all.
Johnston has also reported recently a trade scenario could still be on the table for the Maple Leafs this summer.
“We’ll see if Timothy Liljegren maybe still gets traded,” Johnston said on the July 2 episode of The Chris Johnston Show. “I know he was signed to a two-year extension but I don’t think you can entirely rule out a trade in his circumstance yet. They’re still going to keep chipping away at the roster.
After sending the message that ‘everything is on the table’, the Leafs’ management hasn’t necessarily made drastic changes to the core of the roster. While most of the attention goes to the big guns, Liljegren has been around for five seasons. Could his time as a Leaf be coming to an end?
The case to keep Liljegren is tied to being a right-handed defenseman, which is basically like a unicorn in the NHL at this point. Liljegren is 25 years old, he’s coming off a career-best season where he produced career highs in points-per-game, minutes played, average ice-time on the power play, and blocks. He’s a great skater, he stepped his game up in a big way when Morgan Rielly was suspended and with a new voice behind the bench, perhaps Berube will be able to push Liljegren closer to reaching his full potential, after listening to Keefe for the past five seasons.
The case to move Liljegren is based on what the Leafs have gotten out of him so far throughout his five seasons. There’s been a lot of inconsistencies, on both sides of the puck and while he’s an above-average skater, the lack of physicality may not necessarily align perfectly with Berube’s coaching style. The elephant in the room is the fact the Maple Leafs don’t have many right-handed options on their back end and this could be season where Liljegren could challenge for top-four minutes alongside countryman Oliver Ekman-Larsson. At this point, from a surface-level perspective, there seems to be a lot of pondering going on about how to trade Liljegren, but also not take a giant step backwards on the team’s already thin blue line.
Kampf’s Contract Provides Roadblock
Kampf, on the other hand, is coming off a 19-point season and he’s the sixth highest-paid forward on the team. Frankly, the math isn’t adding up. Treliving signed the defensive-minded centre to a four-year contract last summer, worth $2.4 million annually and also included a 13-team modified no-trade clause. These are all massive hurdles for any trade.
While Kampf was an impact player representing his country at the IIHF World Championships this summer, the same can’t be said for his impact on the Maple Leafs. Recently, Nick Kypreos of the Toronto Star commented on Kampf’s future in Toronto.
“The bottom-six forwards need some attention as well. Is David Kampf still in the plans to lead the Leafs’ checking line? There’s a good chance they cut bait there as well,” Kypreos wrote. “Can he be replaced by prospect Fraser Minten or is it time to look for an NHL-ready player elsewhere?”
The case to move Kampf is based around the inflated cap hit, and the fact the Maple Leafs have Pontus Holmberg and Fraser Minten who could potentially be ready for consistent bottom-six minutes. While Kampf kills penalties, this is an area the Maple Leafs need to improve on, so it’s not like they would be moving an elite penalty-killing forward in any regard.
The case to keep Kampf comes with the territory that moving him is going to need to involve a sweetener in the trade or retaining some of his salary the next three seasons. The only thing worse than paying Kampf his full salary, is paying him any money to play elsewhere. It’s a tricky situation but if Treliving wants to make any changes to the forward group, moving on from the veteran centre needs to be considered.
Nevertheless, the Maple Leafs have a few players who have been linked to some trade talks the past couple of weeks and so far, there hasn’t been much for movement. Which, in its own right, is increasing the frustration around the team as at the start of the offseason, management preached that everything would be on the table. So far, there hasn’t been much offered on the menu of change.
