Welcome back to another edition on NHL Rumours, and today’s looks at the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Leafs are hyper-focused on finding a way to fix their lineup, in a way that allows it to succeed in the Stanley Cup playoffs. At this stage, with the preseason rolling along, it seems more and more likely there’s a move yet to be made to finalize their roster. Therefore, let’s unpack the latest rumours, and where it leaves the Leafs for the fall.
NHL Rumours and the Leafs Seem to be Setting Up to Make a Move
Rumour: Elliotte Friedman chatted at the first intermission of yesterday’s broadcast on Sportsnet in Canada. He suggested the Leafs forward group would likely be making a move. It seems with all the forwards fighting for bottom-six minutes, there’s just not enough room for everyone.
Analysis: The Leafs, led by general manager Brad Treliving have made great progress in bringing in sandpaper to the bottom of the forward group. But with all that shuffling, there’s still more to be done to get things settled.
On the intermission show, Nick Kypreos also weighed in. Between Friedman and Kypreos, they discussed that Nicholas Robertson still possesses offensive upside at the NHL level. They both mentioned that he should be a 20-goal scorer in the league. However, as we of course saw, come playoff time, do the Leafs rely on him when the tough get going? More specifically, can he help the team beat the Florida Panthers in a best-of-seven playoff series? The point is, today, has he indeed improved enough from last year, to change the minds of those choosing the lineup? Is he a guy the Leafs can rely upon in the playoffs against the Panthers or Tampa Bay Lightning or whoever.
Conversely, you could still look at it another way, in that maybe the Leafs have changed their lineup composition just enough to keep a guy like Robertson. With the added physicality Dakota Joshua or Nicolas Roy delivers, maybe Robertson’s goal-scoring threat presence is an advantage. Especially if you angle it as a bottom-six guy, who can snipe. Moreover, Scott Laughton is another guy, he’s a complete, two-way player, and he is great for your lineup. The takeaway is that the Leafs have added plenty of grit to the bottom of the order. The difficulty for the forwards, is that they may have too many options for the same roles.
So, Who Could Be On the Way Out of Toronto?
“Doesn’t seem they can all fit” Friedman said, referring to the opening night roster. The other two players that Friedman specifically lumped in with Robertson were Calle Jarnkrok and David Kampf. Kampf is signed for two years at $2.4 million, while Jarnkrok has one year left at $2.1 million. Robertson had signed this offseason for the 2025-26 campaign at $1.825 million, and remains a restricted free agent after this year. In addition, these are guys who were fighting for ice time in Toronto last year. Now, with the new additions, there’s even more competition for those spots.
The other angle is, that they could use any of these players for an upgrade at forward. In particular, they might want an upgrade in the top six. Maybe a package of two of the three, is appealing enough to a team looking to add depth. They don’t make a lot, and have something to offer, whether that is offence, veteran leadership, or as solid depth contributors.
All three of Robertson, Jarnkrok, and Kampf were in the lineup Sunday, as the Ottawa Senators and Leafs kicked off their pre-season schedules. Also, they all played well for Toronto, chipping in offensively. Maybe they had something to prove, to not only GM Treliving, but all the GMs around the league.
Main Photo Credit: Dan Hamilton – USA TODAY Sports
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