Potential trade landing spots for Nick Robertson

After another year of coming up short, and some would argue, underachieving. It’s also officially the end of an era in Toronto. The majority of players from last season will be back, but a key member of the core won’t be: Mitch Marner. 

In today’s NHL, if you’re not getting better, you’re getting worse. Fans are curious what the Maple Leafs’ next move will be in their pursuit of a championship. Some think that Leafs forward Nick Robertson may be on the way out. 

Nick Robertson’s contract status

The 23-year-old restricted-free-agent winger is currently the only Maple Leaf on the active roster without a contract for next season. Earlier this month, Robertson filed for salary arbitration. While there’s a chance that the Leafs and Robertson can negotiate a deal soon, the rumours of a trade involving Robertson have begun swirling.

Robertson had an up-and-down year with head coach Craig Berube behind the bench. He appeared in 69 regular season games and just three Stanley Cup Playoff games, recording 16 combined goals and 24 points.  He was utilized in more of a third-line checking role, and to give Robertson credit, he began to play more physically and be a hound on pucks, but frankly, he’d be best served among the first two lines of a team, playing with elite forwards with offensive instincts on a regular basis.

Here are some potential landing spots for Nick Robertson, if the trade rumours are true. 

Winnipeg Jets

With the loss of Nikolaj Ehlers to the Carolina Hurricanes in free agency, the Jets are entering next season with a big hole on the left side. The asking price for a potential trade wouldn’t be crazy for the Jets, so if they have interest in Robertson, Winnipeg could be a team to keep your eye on. 

Logan Stanley could be a player who could be included in a return. His 6’7” frame could really help the Leafs’ blue line and be effective in Craig Berube’s system. The Jets have $18M in cap space with eight defenceman signed to one-way deals, plus Dylan Samberg who is an unsigned RFA. Don’t be surprised if they make a few more moves ahead of next season, including moving a defenceman out for help up front.

Columbus Blue Jackets

The Blue Jackets have $16M in cap space, and haven’t made any huge additions this summer. Trading for Robertson and adding him to the good young core in Columbus could be just what they need. He would fit in with a top-six that already projects to include Adam Fantilli, Kirill Marchenko, Kent Johnson, and Cayden Lindstrom at some point down the road.

Robertson hasn’t been able to crack the NHL lineup consistently for the Leafs. This past season, he played 69 games which was a career high. On a team like Columbus, Robertson would probably play almost every night.

As for a potential return, keep an eye on Yegor Chinakov who has reportedly asked for a trade out of Columbus. Similar to Robertson, Chinakov was drafted one year earlier, and also hasn’t played a lot of games in the NHL. The most games Chinakov has played in the NHL was 62 in 2021–22. His contract is up after next season, at $2.1 M per year.

Los Angeles Kings

After four consecutive first-round exits, the Kings are looking for that piece that could help them get to the next level. They’ve already added Corey Perry to their roster, and Robertson would fit into a loaded top-nine.

The Kings have $6.7M in cap space, so they could easily afford Robertson who will likely receive anywhere from the league minimum of $775K to $1.3M depending on how his arbitration goes. He could add some more depth to an already good team.

As for a potential return Alex Turcotte would be a good target. Turcotte was a first-round pick in 2019 but hasn’t really popped yet at the professional level. He played in 68 games with the Kings this past season, the most of his career. Both parties may benefit from giving Turcotte a change of scenery, while giving the Kings a different young player looking to break through in the NHL.

Keep an eye out over the next few weeks for the Leafs next move as it could very well involve Nick Robertson.