Maple Leafs acquire Matias Maccelli from Mammoth for conditional 3rd-round pick

Maccelli is about to enter the final year of a contract originally signed with the Arizona Coyotes, with a cap hit this year of $3.43 million. He had a disappointing campaign last season with only eight goals and 18 points in 55 games played, often sitting as a healthy scratch. However, the year prior he had 40 asssists and 57 points in his first full 82-game season. Bringing him in on the last year of his deal, the Leafs are gambling that he can find that form once again in a new environment under different leadership.

Originally drafted 98th overall in 2019 by the Coyotes, Maccelli split his time in junior hockey between his home country of Finland in the Finnish Elite League and with the Dubuque Fighting Saints in the United States Hockey League. He made his professional debut in the 2021-22 season with the American Hockey League’s Tucson Roadrunners, with 14 goals and 43 assists for a total of 57 points in 47 games played. Known primarily as a playmaker, he led all AHL rookies in the assists column that year with 43, and was twice named the league’s rookie of the month. He made his NHL debut the same year, scoring his first goal with Arizona in his second game played in March 2022.

The move to bring in a middle-six winger comes as Mitch Marner looks all but set to be on his way out of Toronto, either through a sign-and-trade today or when he hits the market tomorrow. And while the Maple Leafs are actively chasing sought after UFA Brad Marchand, Maccelli fills in a left wing spot for the team should Marchand decide to sign in Boston, Florida, or elsewhere.

Treliving promised a summer of big changes in Toronto, and so far he’s delivering. As the clock ticks down to July 1st, we can certainly expect that more big moves are on the way.