Fraser Minten Trade Continues to Haunt Maple Leafs

Bruins Extend Fraser Minten

On Tuesday, September 8, the Bruins announced they have extended Minten for seven years, giving him $50.4 million total, for a $7.2 million cap hit.

He was already under contract for this coming season, so he will be under Boston’s control for eight more seasons total.

Given that the NHL salary cap is rapidly rising, this is a great deal for the Bruins, and one that should age nicely given that Fraser is already a good player and is rapidly improving.

Just 22 years of age, Fraser just completed his first full season in the league, scoring 17 goals and 35 points in 82 regular-season games, though he was held scoreless in six playoff contests.

The Bruins clearly like the Vancouver native, and given how young he is, there is no reason to think he can’t rapidly improve and put up at least 50 points this season.

In a few years, by the time he is 25 years old, there is a real chance that Minter is a point-per-game player for the Bruins.

Not only that, but since Toronto and Boston are in the same division, the Atlantic Division, that means they’ll be seeing a ton of Minter for the next eight years.

Former Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving made a massive mistake that could potentially cost the team for many years to come when he traded Minten and picks for Carlo.

It’s one of the reasons why Treliving was fired by Toronto and replaced by John Chayka.

The only hope for Toronto is that the two players they drafted with the two third-round picks they got from St. Louis for Carlo pan out to be something decent.

Otherwise, this is looking like one of the worst trades in recent memory.

Maple Leafs Got Lucky in NHL Draft Lottery

The first-round pick that Toronto sent to Boston in the trade was top-five protected in 2026, so when the Maple Leafs won the NHL Draft Lottery this year, it made the pick slide to 2027 instead.

The Maple Leafs, then, got extremely lucky, because if their pick slid to sixth overall, Boston could have taken another blue-chip prospect in this year’s draft, making the deal a double whammy for Toronto.

Thankfully, the hockey gods were on Toronto’s side, and the ping-pong balls bounced their way, allowing them to take Penn State U star Gavin McKenna with the first overall pick.

The Maple Leafs are hoping that McKenna proves to be an NHL superstar right away and can help wash the bad taste out of the fans’ mouths after the disastrous Minten trade.

But right now, at this time of writing, all we know is that Minten is a young star in Boston, they have Toronto’s first-round pick next year, and Carlo was a bust.

Not a good trade for Toronto, and hopefully it doesn’t turn out to be one that cripples the franchise going forward if Minten turns into a superstar in Beantown.