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Mac Hollowell

Morgan Rielly Placed On Long-Term Injured Reserve

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The Toronto Maple Leafs are without their top three defensemen now, after Morgan Rielly exited last night with a knee injury. Rielly has been quickly moved to long-term injured reserve, with Darren Dreger of TSN tweeting that there are “rumblings” of a grade 1 or 2 MCL injury. That would come with a four to six-week recovery, according to Dreger.

In his place, the team has recalled Victor Mete and Mac Hollowell from the AHL.

At a very minimum, the veteran defenseman will miss 10 games and 24 days with his LTIR placement. Given he is expected back this season, the cap flexibility awarded with this move is temporary. The Maple Leafs could not for instance replace Rielly’s cap hit with an external option, as they’ll need it to activate him again down the road.

With Rielly, Jake Muzzin, and T.J. Brodie out all at the same time – the latter was on the ice before practice today testing out his oblique injury – the Maple Leafs are in a tough spot. The team’s most reliable defender becomes 39-year-old Mark Giordano, with some mix of Justin Holl, Timothy Liljegren, Rasmus Sandin, and Jordie Benn behind him.

Mete obviously has plenty of NHL experience as well, but Hollowell would be making his debut should he get into the lineup.

With that in mind, there will be plenty of speculation surrounding the Maple Leafs in the next few weeks. The team had already been linked to several defensemen around the league, and if Muzzin is out for the rest of the season, as expected, they do have a bit of cap room to work with.

Toronto Maple Leafs Recall Mac Hollowell

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According to the AHL’s Transactions page and the Toronto Maple Leafs roster page, the Maple Leafs have recalled defenseman Mac Hollowell from the AHL’s Toronto Marlies. There does not appear to be any corresponding moves made.

Thankfully for Hollowell, both the NHL and AHL club play in the same city, as he’s been bounced around plenty this week, in fact this is his third recall since November 14th. The Maple Leafs, who are sitting very close to the salary cap, even utilizing LTIR, have had to get creative with their roster recently, which seems to include shuffling Hollowell between the NHL and AHL. This recall gives the Maple Leafs a full 23-man roster, including seven defenseman.

Despite the frequent recalls, Hollowell has yet to actually crack the NHL lineup, though if he does, it would be his NHL debut. The shuffling has also yet to do any harm to his gameplay, the defenseman recording nine points, all assists, in 10 AHL games thus far. The 24-year-old was a fourth-round pick of the Maple Leafs back in 2018.

The Maple Leafs will host the Buffalo Sabres tonight at 7:00 pm ET.

Jake Muzzin Out Indefinitely With Cervical Spine Injury

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The Toronto Maple Leafs aren’t getting Jake Muzzin back for a while. Toronto announced today that Muzzin is dealing with a cervical spine injury and is out indefinitely. His status will be re-evaluated in late February. Meanwhile, the team has also placed T.J. Brodie on injured reserve with an oblique injury and recalled Mac Hollowell and Pontus Holmberg from the minor leagues.

Muzzin, 33, has suffered several head, neck, and back injuries over the last few years, leading to his early exit from multiple playoff series and a relatively low number of regular season appearances. In 47 games last year he registered just 14 points, the lowest total of his career, and he failed to make it through even four contests this season before suffering this latest injury.

It hasn’t even been limited to his time in the NHL. Muzzin suffered a serious back injury in minor hockey as well, causing him to miss the entire 2005-06 season after being drafted 11th overall by the Soo Greyhounds in the OHL Priority Selection. While he would return from that injury and play a partial season for the Greyhounds in 2006-07, it caused him to fall considerably in NHL drafts, with the Pittsburgh Penguins eventually taking him 141st overall.

A warrior who can play a physical game but also contribute offensively, he would eventually become captain of the Greyhounds and quickly make his way to the NHL, winning a Stanley Cup with the Los Angeles Kings in 2014. By 2015 he was playing with Canada at the World Championship (where he won gold) and then again at the World Cup in 2016 (where he won gold).

Now, with his career seemingly in jeopardy, he sits at 683 regular season games and 294 career points. Muzzin received votes for the Norris Trophy in both 2016 and 2019, finishing 11th in the latter.

Though they would certainly rather a healthy, effective Muzzin in the lineup, his placement on LTIR earlier this season did open up some flexibility for the Maple Leafs. They still have quite a few question marks on the back end (especially with Brodie now out of the lineup) but inserted Jordie Benn over the weekend to add some extra physicality (and apparently, game-winning goals). If Muzzin is going to spend the entire season on the shelf, it would allow them to make an acquisition of some sort.

Toronto Places Kase On LTIR, Recalls Three On Emergency Basis

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After losing three starters in Tuesday night’s game against the rival Boston Bruins, the Toronto Maple Leafs were left with little choice but to tweak their roster. Up against the salary cap and managing a number of injuries, Toronto has opted to move forward Ondrej Kase to the Long-Term Injured Reserve, CapFriendly reports. This raised the Leafs’ LTIR pool just enough to make three emergency recalls while staying under the upper limit of the cap. Promoted to the NHL roster are defensemen Mac Hollowell and Filip Kral and goaltender Michael Hutchinson, who will replace Justin Holl, Ilya Lyubushkin, and Petr Mrazek, each of whom exited last night’s game.

Kase has been out since suffering a head injury earlier this month. As of Friday, the team had still not ruled it a concussion, but given Kase’s extensive history of head injuries it hardly matters. The dynamic, but oft-injured winger will need plenty of time to return to action, allowing the team to move him to LTIR. He joins defensemen Jake Muzzin and Rasmus Sandin on the long-term shelf, bringing the Leafs’ LTIR salary pool to $7.77MM, the amount that they may exceed the salary cap as a means of replacing those players. However, Muzzin and his $5.625MM cap hit are expected to be activated sooner rather than later, which will drastically change the calculus for Toronto.

Meanwhile, Holl, Lyubushkin, and Mrazek join starting goaltender Jack Campbell as the Leafs’ other injured players. Mrazek’s injury history and inconsistency this season make his absence both relatively unsurprising and somewhat inconsequential. However, the major hit to the blue line depth cannot be ignored. While Toronto impressed in a 6-4 win over Boston on Tuesday, they can ill-afford to continue battling this injury bug. They sit just two points ahead of the Bruins and one point behind the Tampa Bay Lightning in the race for Atlantic playoff position and are set to face Tampa and the Florida Panthers next week.

While the veteran Hutchinson is battle-tested and ready for the challenge, he and rookie Erik Kallgren splitting the net for the Leafs is unlikely to be successful for too long. On the back end, Hollowell and Kral have no NHL experience and are an even bigger liability. Toronto is hoping that these emergency recalls are just that and their regulars will be back in action soon.

 

Trade Deadline Primer: Toronto Maple Leafs

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With the All-Star break now behind us, the trade deadline looms large and is now less than a month away.  Where does each team stand and what moves should they be looking to make?  We continue our look around the league with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

As has been the case for the past few seasons, the Toronto Maple Leafs are once again under immense pressure to buy at the deadline and finally make the jump out of the first round of the playoffs. The team has already made one move, adding defensive depth to the roster in the form of former Arizona Coyote Ilya Lyubushkin, but with some potential added cap flexibility due to defenseman Jake Muzzin’s injury, general manager Kyle Dubas has the chance to make a bigger splash prior to March 21st.

Record

33-14-4, 3rd in the Atlantic

Deadline Status

Buyer

Deadline Cap Space

$4.47MM today, $4.47MM in full-season space, 1/3 retention slots used, 47/50 contracts used per CapFriendly

Upcoming Draft Picks

2022: TOR 1st, TOR 2nd, TOR 7th*
2023: TOR 1st, TOR 2nd, TOR 3rd, TOR 4th, TOR 5th, TOR 6th

* – if Brennan Menell plays 30 regular-season games for Toronto in 2021-22, the Minnesota Wild receive Toronto’s 2022 seventh-round pick. Menell has yet to make his Leafs debut this season.

Trade Chips

It’s been widely reported that the team is reluctant to move their first-round pick this year or much of their top prospect pool. Taking that into account, it’s likely that any trade package includes a body from their now-extremely deep defensive pool. The most appealing option for trade partners is likely Travis Dermott. The team’s second-round selection in 2015 has been continually pushed down the depth chart by the emergence of Rasmus Sandin, but still has upside at 25 years old. He’s consistently mustered solid defensive results, and increased opportunity could help unlock some more offense. He has just five points in 37 games this year.

There’s also the matter of Justin Holl. He offers some cost certainty for teams, which is appealing — he’s locked into a $2MM cap hit through the end of next season. But he’s been prone to some egregious defensive mistakes this season, causing him to slip further down the lineup and become a healthy scratch at times. He does have experience playing top-four minutes, though, and does have a solid defensive track record throughout his short career. He still likely has some trade value.

Toronto also has a trio of young goalies in their AHL system in Erik Källgren, Joseph Woll, and Ian Scott. While the organization is high on Woll and would prefer to retain him, one of Kallgren or Scott could almost certainly be a part of a trade package. Källgren in particular likely carries some value, as he’s posted a solid .909 SV% in 22 AHL games and was the netminder behind Växjo’s run to the Swedish Hockey League championship in 2021.

Others To Watch For: F Alex Steeves ($834K through 2024), F Pontus Holmberg ($828k through 2023), D Mac Hollowell ($800k this year, $750k through 2023)

Team Needs

1) Wing Depth — Toronto has gotten impressive seasons out of free-agent wild cards Michael Bunting and Ondrej Kase, as well as Alexander Kerfoot and Ilya Mikheyev. But too much depth is never a bad thing, and the Leafs could use an upgrade to slot into the top-six, likely alongside John Tavares on the second line. Kerfoot’s versatility allows him to slide back down to a third-line role with ease, helping create a better matchup game for head coach Sheldon Keefe come playoff time.

2) Potential Muzzin Replacement — The health status of Jake Muzzin for the playoffs remains uncertain, as he’s on long-term injured reserve indefinitely as he recovers from his second concussion in a short timeframe. If Muzzin isn’t ready to go, an experienced left-shot D-man (Mark Giordano?) could make sense, especially as to not put too much pressure on the shoulders of the young Sandin and Liljegren.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

Toronto Maple Leafs Extend Mac Hollowell

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The Toronto Maple Leafs have signed one of their young defensemen to an extension, inking Mac Hollowell to a new one-year, two-way contract for 2022-23. The deal carries a salary of $750K at the NHL level. Hollowell was scheduled to become a restricted free agent at the end of the season.

Selected 118th overall in 2018, the 23-year-old Hollowell has been a nice example of the Maple Leafs development system, going through the ECHL’s Newfoundland Growlers before becoming a key member of the Toronto Marlies. He’s yet to play at the NHL level–which is still not a guarantee at all–but has 14 points in 23 games for the AHL club this season.

His biggest obstacle is still his size, as Hollowell measures in at just 5’9″ and 165 lbs. There have been small defensemen in the NHL before but usually, they come with some elite offensive upside. Hollowell does have good instincts in that regard but especially with the likes of Morgan Rielly and Rasmus Sandin ahead of him, those minutes would be hard to come by with the Maple Leafs.

He is right-handed though, which has been an area of concern for Toronto in recent years and still doesn’t feature a ton of depth. A new contract likely means nothing more than a spot on the Marlies but perhaps Hollowell can take his growth even further next season.

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