Jonas Siegel of The Athletic speculates what a potential Mitch Marner trade might look like for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Siegel points to several recent trades for Pierre-Luc Dubois and Dougie Hamilton as templates the Maple Leafs could use to get a return package for the 27-year-old Marner. Both of those trades brought young NHL-ready talent back to their respective teams, which is something that Toronto would likely covet given their competitive window.
Siegel points to the Carolina Hurricanes and Tampa Bay Lightning as teams that the Maple Leafs could potentially do business with. Carolina could dangle Seth Jarvis, Andrei Svechnikov, and Martin Necas as potential centerpieces of a return for Marner, while Tampa Bay could use Mikhail Sergachev or Brandon Hagel.
Siegel does concede that any potential Marner trade could be nixed by his no-movement clause and might be a difficult trade for Toronto to win. However, with Marner’s pending free agency status, it may be something they need to explore.
In other Eastern Conference notes:
- Max Bultman of The Athletic wonders if the Detroit Red Wings might be players in the goaltending market this summer, specifically the trade market where several high-end starters are available. Bultman writes that the Red Wings’ general manager isn’t revealing much but adds that Ville Husso’s health could nudge the Red Wings into the trade market and would be the quickest way to improve the team’s overall defense which was something that was an Achilles heel last season. Detroit missed the playoffs by the smallest of margins and adding a top-tier netminder might be the thing that gets them back into the playoffs for the first time since 2016. The team has backup Alex Lyon signed next year to a very reasonable $900K, but likely can’t count on him to duplicate his 44-game workload from this past season.
- Elliotte Friedman reported today on his 32 Thoughts podcast that the rights to Hurricanes forward Jake Guentzel are available for a mid-round pick. Friedman tells his audience that Carolina has made it known to other teams that the 29-year-old’s signing rights are available and adds that there will be a ton of interest. It was reported earlier this week that Guentzel was likely to test free agency and it makes sense for the Hurricanes to pivot and try to recoup an asset after dealing Michael Bunting, three prospects, and a second-round pick to Pittsburgh at the trade deadline to acquire Guentzel.
There is no way Jarvis or Svech are getting moved for Marner, as good as MM is.
The team that comes up short in the playoffs and is notorious for driving a hard bargin is going to trade one of their best value players for a guy who comes up short in the playoffs and is notorious for driving a hard bargin.
It’s like the media in Toronto don’t know anything about the rest of the league.
Yes… I know… they don’t.
It also seems incredibly unlikely they’d trade him to a division rival in Tampa.
Haha! Tampa isn’t trading Mikhail Sergachev or Brandon Hagel for Toronto’s Mitch Marner for any means. That’s a laugh! Hagel & Sergachev are better performers than Marner & significant core pieces for Tampa.
The only reason why the media (particularly Toronto’s delusional media) keeps bringing up Tampa for Marner because Cooper had some complimentary words of him in the past but that doesn’t mean Tampa is going for Marner by any means.
A Tampa/Toronto trade ISN’T happening! Keep dreamin.
Detroit could relieve some pressure on the defensive end and goal tender by getting 2 of their top point getters to play a 200 foot game. Specifically what their responsibilities are in the D zone. Husso is another issue, he has developed some kind of problem, perhaps more than just an injury.
Lawson Crouse & Sean Durzi would make an ideal package for the Leafs and solidify their blue line. Josh Brown would be a nice UFA piece as well.
And in Part XXXCVI of Bored Sportswriters Trying To Come Up With Something, Anything, at the deadline. Siegel *concedes* that Marner’s NMC might make it tough? If the guy doesn’t want to go anywhere — and he’s said as much — he isn’t going anywhere.