Nick Robertson calls out Leafs for jerking him around

Toronto Maple Leafs rookie Nick Robertson isn't impressed with his boss.

Leafs GM Brad Treliving recalled Robertson from the AHL's Toronto Marlies today after sending him down just a day earlier in an effort to free up some cap space and to keep from losing a player like Pontus Holmberg on waivers. Robertson though made it clear to the media today that he's not a fan of Treliving's strategy and he'd rather just remain with the Leafs full-time, a right that he feel he has earned.

"I understand it but I’m not going to sit here and say that I’m happy," Robertson said following practice at Scotiabank Arena earlier today. "I want to play, but I understand my contract situation. Obviously, if it wasn’t the way it was maybe it would be a different situation but it is what it is."

This isn't the first time that Robertson has been jerked around by the Leafs for contract reasons, of course.

"Every year I’m learning something new with the cap situation. I think I’m getting more knowledge to become an assistant GM one day," Robertson joked. "When you think you’re in the clear and then all of a sudden you didn’t know — I have no idea. There’s a bunch of stuff. Obviously, you have to fit in the cap. That’s the main thing. But the roster spot. I’m more knowledgeable on it now than I was before."

At the same time, it's clear that Robertson isn't happy with the situation he's in.

"I’ve been in plenty of situations before where waivers have kind of screwed me. I’m numb to it," Robertson said. " I’ve had to be in situations where I’ve had to find my way back and stuff. But like I said, I’m not happy about it. I want to be in the lineup. It is what it is. I just manage it and wait for my name to be called."

Read below for our earlier report on the Leafs, published yesterday.

The Toronto Maple Leafs were active at the trade deadline but Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving was relatively conservative with the additions that he made to his roster heading into the Stanley Cup playoffs.

There are a number of factors that may have contributed to Treliving shying away from the big splash, and one of those could be the fact that he simply does not believe his team is a legitimate Stanley Cup contender in its current iteration.

Although the Maple Leafs boast one of the most dynamic offenses in the National Hockey League, the same can't be said of either their defense or their goaltending. Recently a former Maple Leafs general manager, speaking under anonymity, expressed his own doubts about the future of this current roster when it comes playoff time.

"I don’t see how you can win long-term in the playoffs with that defence and that goaltending," said the former GM as per Steve Simmons, "Too much guessing, I think."

Treliving did do some work towards addressing the team's issues on the blue line with the additions of veterans Ilya Lyubushkin and Joel Edmundson, but the Leafs GM did not make any moves to improve the team's goaltending. Those moves however are unlikely to have alleviated the concerns raised by the former Leafs GM who seems to think the Leafs are unlikely to go very far in the playoffs once again.