Maple Leafs Rumors and More

As is the case every offseason, the Toronto Maple Leafs are involved in many offseason rumors. Is this going to be the summer when Toronto trades Morgan Rielly? Can the Maple Leafs find a top-six forward to replace the loss of production suffered from Mitch Marner’s leaving last summer?

New GM John Chayka is going to have his hands full this offseason. How much of the team he inherited stays together? Who stays, and who goes? Is the team going to hire a new head coach before the NHL entry draft? Will Toronto keep their 1st-overall pick? There are so many questions, it’s hard to keep track of them all.

The Maple Leafs naming John Chayka as GM was a huge surprise. What he does as the GM could be an even bigger surprise. He won the NHL draft lottery in his second day on the job. Chayka’s summer is only going to intensify between now and the start of training camp in September.

My understanding is that Chayka and the Maple Leafs would like to have the team’s new head coach in place before the NHL draft on June 26th. It sounds like the original list of 55+ candidates has been narrowed down to around 20. That list will probably get narrowed down to a dozen by June 15th. Chayka would then have ten days to decide on who the next head coach of the Maple Leafs should be.

Maple Leafs Rumors

Mason McTavish

The Toronto Maple Leafs are reportedly one of the teams interested in Anaheim Ducks forward Mason McTavish. Other teams in the mix are the St. Louis Blues and Winnipeg Jets. McTavish registered 17 goals and 24 assists for 41 points in 75 games last season. He has registered 40+ points in each of his last four seasons. The 23-year-old has five years left on his contract with a $7 million salary cap hit.

Joseph Woll / Anthony Stolarz

The Maple Leafs are expected to explore the trade market for their two goaltenders. Dennis Hildeby and Artur Akhtyamov are both pushing for an NHL spot. Akhtyamov is one of the main reasons the AHL’s Toronto Marlies are heading into the Calder Cup final.

The Philadelphia Flyers and Edmonton Oilers lead the charge in wanting to acquire a new goaltender. The Florida Panthers could also be in the mix if Sergei Bobrovsky leaves in free agency.

Morgan Rielly

After 13 seasons with the Maple Leafs, it looks like Morgan Rielly could be asked to waive his No-Movement Clause (NMC). If he agrees to waive it, he will still have full control over which team he gets traded to. Despite being from Vancouver, he likely won’t go there due to their team being in a rebuild. Rielly will want to go to a contender.

The San Jose Sharks are a team in need of defensemen. Expect the Ducks, Oilers, and Chicago Blackhawks to be in the mix. Edmonton is looking to trade away the $9.25 million contract of Darnell Nurse. If they do, they’ll be in the hunt for a cheaper top-four option.

Restocking the Cupboard

Another task for John Chayka is to start restocking the Maple Leafs prospect pool. The cupboards are not bare, but they’re not fully stocked either. Former GM Brad Treliving traded a few prospects and picks during his short tenure.

The Blackhawks have reportedly told other GMs that they’re open to trading any of their picks for the 2026 and 2027 drafts. They have the 4th overall pick in this year’s draft. They own three 2026 second-round picks (including Toronto’s). In 2027, the Blackhawks own three first-round picks and two second-round picks.

Other teams with multiple picks in the first or second rounds over the next two seasons are Anaheim, Calgary, Seattle, St. Louis, and Vancouver.