The Toronto Maple Leafs have been without captain Auston Matthews for almost two weeks with a lower-body injury. Sportsnet’s Luke Fox argued that Matthews’ prolonged absence has opened some eyes in Toronto regarding the team’s center depth.
Toronto essentially moved every center up a line with John Tavares and Max Domi manning the top two lines. Fox believes that the Maple Leafs must upgrade their third line, which has usually been centered by Domi this season. He’s only managed six assists in 18 games this season and hasn’t scored a goal in the regular since April 6th, 2024.
If general manager Brad Treliving concurs with the assessment the team will have some options available for trade. Fox lists Brock Nelson, Mikael Granlund, Frank Vatrano, Nick Bjugstad, and Jake Evans as the likeliest options for the Maple Leafs to pursue with the former being undeniably the best option.
- Moving back to Toronto, defenseman Dakota Mermis skated this morning before practice according to David Alter of The Hockey News. Mermis, who has been on the team’s LTIR while recovering from jaw surgery, signed a one-year, $775K contract with the Maple Leafs this past offseason.