The case for the Maple Leafs becoming sellers

The Toronto Maple Leafs are at a critical point in the season that will dictate their direction heading into the trade deadline.

The 2025-26 campaign has been very inconsistent for the team in terms of overall performance and the play of key individuals. There have certainly been high points, notably the 12-game stretch after firing Marc Savard, but there have also been extended moments in the abyss. The first two months of the regular season doomed their outlook and their current five-game slide has effectively sunk the season. It has left the Leafs on the fringes of the playoff bubble, yet there has been no indication that this year’s team has a legitimate shot at the Stanley Cup.

With the Olympic break fast approaching, GM Brad Treliving needs to quickly determine what the plan of attack is for the Leafs for the remainder of the year. It’s unlikely the team will be buyers simply due to the fact they aren’t a lock to make the playoffs at this stage, so it is either commit to selling off assets or stand pat.

In the first of a two-part series, we explore the case for the Leafs becoming sellers or standing pat at the deadline.

The case for selling

The Leafs are a flawed hockey team that has not been playing inspiring hockey for much of the season. They get routinely outplayed, the shot count is usually in the opponent’s favour, and the sum of their parts hasn’t been enough to generate sustained success. Even during the times the Leafs were winning games, it was not convincing enough that it would result in future success during the most critical time of the season.

A critical problem that Treliving has dealt with all year is that there just aren’t enough assets for him to go out and make the kind of upgrades that the Leafs need. It makes sense why they have been rumoured to be in on Rasmus Andersson and Dougie Hamilton, but Treliving’s best offer would either not be enough to whet the appetite of the other team or would result in assets he isn’t keen on moving off of.

Even if the Leafs did have enough pieces to execute on the trades they do want to make, is this year’s team worth pushing your chips to the centre of the table for? They are not completely out of the race just yet, but the math isn’t lining up in their favour to reach the dance for a 10th consecutive season. It wouldn’t be wise to spend what little remains in the cupboard and then end up missing the playoffs by a point ot two.

There are plenty of assets that the Leafs could dangle on the market to kickstart a retool on the fly. Oliver Ekman-Larsson is having a renaissance year and could easily fetch a first-round pick if he is made available. Bobby McMann and Scott Laughton could be an ideal rental for contenders to target, especially with them being at just over a million each. Simon Benoit may be struggling mightily, but a contract with two years of control and him being a shutdown defenceman could be too good to pass up for teams that feel they are one piece away. And that’s only scratching the surface of who they could move out between now and March 6th.

It would certainly be a painful few months for Leafs fans who have been accustomed to the team being in the hunt for the Stanley Cup, but sometimes a one-year setback isn’t the worst thing a team can deal with. There are plenty of examples, as the Boston Bruins, Tampa Bay Lightning, and Washington Capitals have shown in recent years that a quick retool can breathe new life into a team and extend the window.

We want to hear from you in the comments: Do you think the Leafs should be sellers at the trade deadline?