Dec. 31: Head coach Craig Berube told reporters today, including Friedman, that Tanev will be out indefinitely after being diagnosed with a groin injury.
Dec. 30: After previously being ruled out for tonight’s game, it’s clear Maple Leafs skaters Chris Tanev and Dakota Joshua will miss more time than that. Tanev will be out for “some time” with a lower-body issue unrelated to the previous injury that sidelined him for nearly two months, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports, while Joshua sustained a kidney injury in Sunday’s game against the Red Wings that resulted in internal bleeding, remaining in Detroit for observation.
Both will likely end up on injured reserve today to create the roster space for Matt Benning and Jacob Quillan, who were recalled from AHL Toronto this morning. Tanev was only just activated from IR last week, missing 27 of Toronto’s previous 28 contests with an upper-body injury. The right-shot defenseman’s brief return to the Toronto roster consisted of three games of work, posting a +3 rating with seven blocks while averaging 20:40 of ice time.
Tanev, arguably the Leafs’ most stabilizing defensive presence, has played in only 11 games this year due to an upper-body injury he initially sustained on Oct. 21 against the Devils. Despite that, his +8 rating is still third-best on the team, and his duo with Jake McCabe has allowed just 0.84 goals against per 60 minutes at 5-on-5, sitting among the league’s most staunch defense pairs.
Another multi-game absence will force the Leafs to continue to lean on overmatched right-shot depth like Philippe Myers, although it will give the chance for waiver claim Troy Stecher (1-5–6, +9 in 19 GP) to continue his strong run of play alongside McCabe. The burden on Myers and Stecher should be eased soon with Brandon Carlo nearing a return from foot surgery, but it’s far from an ideal situation as Toronto tries to climb out of a tie for last place in the Eastern Conference.
Joshua had appeared in all but two games for the Leafs this season, his first in Toronto after being acquired from the Canucks last offseason in exchange for a fourth-round pick. He’s improved on his underwhelming showing for Vancouver last year, but not by much, putting up a 6-4–10 scoring line in 36 games. He’s excelled in providing the element of physicality that’s expected from him, though, leading the team in hits with 127 and ranking second among Leafs forwards with 26 blocks.
For a player starting nearly three-quarters of his even-strength shifts in the defensive zone, though, Joshua’s -2 rating is a fine one. He’s consistently logged third-line minutes at even strength and is far from being an insignificant loss for what will likely be the next several weeks as a result. Expanded ice time should be in store for trade bait Matias Maccelli and rookie Easton Cowan, who’s posted four goals and 11 points through his first 27 games.
Just blow it up already!
There’s a silky Swede in the top 3. I’m okay with blowing it up just see the hockey worlds head spin.
I’d prefer Verhoeff or Belchetz, personally.
Assuming Verhoeff will learn to use his size and won’t be Tyler Myers or Dougie Hamilton 2.0 I would be okay with that. Personally I think Ivar is a bit underrated.
@spaced. Is Ivar another Nylander or Forsberg? That’s the question. Top 5 will all be good, for sure. Lawrence looks like a Duchene or Bergeron in the making. If Leafs tank and the lottery rolls their way they could get a really good player.
Naslund-esque, Lucas Raymond goal instics. He’ll be somewhere between both Forsbergs :D
After this news they have no choice but to begin the full rebuild and fire sale process.
Players they must shop/trade before the March deadline:
⚠️D Jake McCabe – 32 – ($4.5m through 2030 can add some good stability to anyone’s blueline. Don’t need to trade him unless they can get a high draft pick/young talent and not retain any salary).
✅D Oliver Ekman-Larson – 34 – ($3.5m through 2028 very team friendly contract! Package him with either Domi/Robertson).
⚠️F William Nylander – 29 – should be shopped to Chicago if not already. Salary/term will need to be retained – about 25-35% for 2 years or so. Need a highly draft pick/top prospect/player.
♨️F Max Domi – 30 – (terrible fit and major disappointment. TOR might need to take another poor contract back which is ok – another defender?)
💢F Bobby McMann – 29 – pending UFA. Don’t need to trade him unless a decent return available. Package with McCabe?).
✅Nick Robertson – 24 – (pending RFA – not a fit for Berube. Package deal with OEL or McCabe).
✅Scott Laughton – 31 – (pending UFA $1.5m and an easy move. High draft pick or a young player).
Players traded this summer or before 2027 deadline:
✅ C – Auston Matthews – 28 – (cannot wait any longer. Matthews must be gone before opening night as well as Nylander. Kings, Sharks, Kraken, etc. UFA 2028 so no need to retain long-term but perhaps a bit on salary, no more than 35% for next season).
✅ D – Brandon Carlo – 29 – (UFA in 2027 and having an awful 25/26 season. Only hope for him to rebound on a re-tooling Toronto team playing for next contract. High draft pick/young forward in return).
✅ C Nicholas Roy – 28 – (The return for Marner much better than nothing. Hasn’t played well in Berube’s system which is disappointing. Pending UFA in 2027. Package with Carlo?).
⚠️ F Mattias Macelli – 25 – (Maybe a better fit next season on a team without Matthews and Nylander? Pending RFA but deserves no more than $2.5m currently making an insane $3.4m from
ARZ/UTH. Will end up in arbitration but Toronto must walk away with anything over 1 year and $3m).
Sounds more and more like guys don’t even want to play anymore. If true, then time is definitely up for Craig Berube unfortunately. Another pass for losers Matthews and Nylander as they get another quality coach fired.
Let Derek Lalonde take over for the rest of the season and trade as many guys as possible. Start building around Knies and Cowan. Even if Tavares wants an another shot at winning elsewhere, not a bad contract for a team to take on.
Get as many high draft picks or younger players as possible between now and the deadline and then in the summer goodbye Matthews and anyone else that doesn’t fit the plans for the future.
If MLSE and Treliving still don’t see this as the end of the line for this group then the next decade or more will be completely lost.
ITS OVER! Time to blow it up entirely and start over from scratch.
Tanev is old, And slow, Joshua is a career minor leaguer, So, Not a big deal at all, In fact, If the Leafs hadn’t mortgaged the future several times, They would have serviceable replacements.
Look directly across the border and see what happens when you change an incompetent GM. Flames fans snickered when Tree went to the leafs.
Time to blow it ALL up!!
Treviling will always be known for letting good talent walk away for “nowhere near” returns. He’s a “throw your dart” and hope things stick kind of GM. He has no vision.
Getting a new GM now, is the best course for this team.
Never been a big Trev guy. The Carlo trade made me want to vomit.
Ditto the Stolarz extension when you could’ve had a prove it year.
They actually play better as a team without Matthews in the locker room. See tonight’s game. Just what I suspected…