We all knew trade rumours were going to blow up in Toronto once the Maple Leafs placed goalie Ilya Samsonov on waivers to demote him to the AHL in order to get a mental reset. Samsonov’s struggles are added to an already ugly situation in between the pipes for the Maple Leafs with Joseph Woll sidelined for several weeks with an ankle injury…
Even before Samsonov was waived, there were talks on different potential options for Maple Leafs’ general manager Brad Treliving, who was suggested by Luke Fox of Sportsnet to turn to the Montreal Canadiens to inquire about veteran netminder Jake Allen. He also listed Buffalo Sabres' Eric Comrie, Calgary Flames’ Dan Vladar and Ottawa Senators’ Anton Forsberg as potential fits, though other pundits believe former Leaf James Reimer, now with the Detroit Red Wings, could be the best option.
Excuse me, but they all sound like terrible options for the Maple Leafs, who not only need to figure out what to do in net, but also must bolster the blue line if they hope for a much longer playoff run this upcoming spring.
While Fox believes Nashville Predators’ starter Juuse Saros would the “dream scenario”, his team is not a seller as it currently sits in a playoff spot and it would cost Treliving way to much to acquire the netminder.
Another Maple Leafs insider, Jonas Siegel of The Athletic, points to Flames goalie Jacob Markstrom , Columbus Blue Jackets’ Elvis Merzlikins and Anaheim Ducks’ John Gibson as “big-bet starters”. However, there are significant obstacles on these potential transactions as well, not only due to their expensive contracts, but also because Merzlikins and Gibson have partial no-trade lists and Markstrom, who has a full no-movement clause, could cost the former Flames GM Treliving a lot in order to pry him out of Calgary.
For now, the Maple Leafs are trusting aging third-stringer Martin Jones and call-up Dennis Hildeby as they travel California. After all last night, Jones made 32 saves to get his 30th career shutout, his second since returning to the NHL last month.
It sure sounds like Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman got it right when he reported on Saturday that Toronto doesn’t have much trade capital in draft picks and prospects and prefer to stay away from the trade market until Woll returns to action in a few weeks.
In the meantime, I guess the Maple Leafs will continue to keep their fingers crossed… and the pads in front of their net closed!
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