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Brad Treliving Publicly Addresses Ryan Reaves' Future With the Maple Leafs

Originally posted on Maple Leafs Daily | By Mike Armenti | Last updated Mar 8, 2025 4:44 PM ET

After acquiring Brandon Carlo and Scott Laughton on trade deadline day, Brad Treliving addressed the future of veteran enforcer Ryan Reaves with the Maple Leafs.

Brad Treliving, like most other NHL general managers, was a very busy man on Friday as he looked to try to improve his team before the 3:00 pm ET trade deadline. He was able to do so in the form of Scott Laughton and a last minute deal for former long-time Bruins defenseman Brandon Carlo.

Unfortunately for Ryan Reaves, how Treliving and company were able to seek upgrades at all was to clear most of his $1.35M cap hit by placing Reaves on waivers and subsequently assigning him to the AHL's Toronto Marlies once he cleared.

Most felt as though the writing was already on the wall for Reaves' time in Toronto after the veteran winger was waived on Thursday, but according to Treliving himself, that is not the case.

'This isn't goodbye. Ryan is still a big part of our locker room & a part of our team ... My hope is that we can get him back here sooner rather than later,' said Treliving.

As we know, once the playoffs begin, the salary cap is no longer a factor for teams, so we could see Reaves back up with the team in a matter if weeks -- perhaps sooner if the team is dealing with injury issues.

Reaves has one year remaining on his contract in Toronto, and with the salary cap expected to jump significantly this summer, there is certainly a possibility that Reaves does stick around for the final year of his deal.

However, if contract negotiations result in higher cap hits for Mitch Marner, John Tavares and Matthew Knies this summer, Reaves very well could, once again, be a cap casualty, winding up back on waivers, or moved out of Toronto entirely -- regardless of the message Treliving was attempting to convey on Friday.

This article first appeared on Maple Leafs Daily and was syndicated with permission.

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