Maple Leafs Trade Mitch Marner Could Disrupt Forward Depth – Hockey Writers – Toronto Maple Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs have one of the most loyal fans in the entire NHL. That said, loyalty also comes with criticism if a team can't find success in the postseason, and that's what happened last season when they were eliminated in the first round by the Boston Bruins. As soon as it was finished, fans began to point to the leading group of “Core Four”, but it seemed to refer more to Mitch Marner than anyone else. Auston Matthews hasn't been able to produce offensively, but fans are aware of his dominance in the regular season and hope he can bounce back from it this season when it comes to the playoffs. Rumors surrounding Marner have been strong this offseason and while a big move could benefit the team long-term, it will cripple the Maple Leafs' forward depth if they can't get a big return to replace him.

If the Marner trade ends up going through, the Maple Leafs should be able to get a big trade package back. That being said, the team's forward depth is not strong. If they can't bring back at least two NHL-ready players who can solidly produce at least a middle-six forward role, they could be in real trouble. There was talk of some star forward being traded this offseason including Martin Necas from the Carolina Hurricanes, but he couldn't bolster the team's depth chart to the point where it wouldn't hurt the Maple Leafs' immediate future.

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I'm still on the side supporting a Marner trade, but only if it means return benefits for the Maple Leafs in both the immediate and long term future. Ideally, bringing back Marner's replacement, who is likely to be at the same level as Necas, and another forward, prospect, and draft pick helps the team both ways. It's a long shot and it seems unlikely that the Maple Leafs will move Marner before the 2025 trade deadline, but if they do, they need to make sure they don't hurt their chances of a playoff run.

What Does The First Team Look Like Without Marner?

If you simply remove Marner from the Maple Leafs roster, the team's forward line is not strong enough to make a deep run in the postseason. Matthews, Matthew Knies, Bobby McMann, John Tavares, and William Nylander round out the rest of the tight end, but the third line is where you get a little worried. Currently, the proposed third line for the Maple Leafs is a combination of Max Domi, Pontus Holmberg, Connor Dewar, Calle Jarnkrok, David Kampf, and Ryan Reaves, with three others covering the fourth line. Good, but not great. Now, think about that team without a replacement for Marner and who could step up to the top six to fill in for him temporarily, which seems unlikely.

Domi could take reps in the top-six, and maybe Dewar gets a shot if he starts the season well, but nobody has enough power to replace Marner and produce the way he can. While it seems like the Maple Leafs realize this and didn't make a scary trade to try something, they need to face the music and see what they're working on won't cut it in the postseason. . Unfortunately they will have to sacrifice something to get better, I hope that doesn't mean missing out on the playoffs due to Marner's deal not working out.