The Toronto Maple Leafs will take the ice Wednesday night against the Vegas Golden Knights in their final game before Friday’s 3 p.m. NHL trade deadline. With the Atlantic Division race heating up and other contenders making major moves, all eyes are on general manager Brad Treliving and whether he will add reinforcements for the playoff push.
Feb 4, 2025; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews (34) against the Calgary Flames during the third period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images
Star forward and captain, Auston Matthews, is putting his faith and confidence in management to make the right decisions, potentially adding a “boost” to the current roster.
“You look at our division in particular, it’s obviously very tight. Knowing what we know, management’s going to do the best that they can. I think all we can do is trust in them,” said Matthews after Wednesday’s on-ice session. “I mean, of course, you’d love to see a boost. I think with the way we’ve played this year, the position that we’re in right now, we feel really confident, really good about our team, our group.”
“But at this time of year, you see teams adding, and you want to add as well. I’m sure the management and staff are doing a lot of thinking right now, doing a lot of homework and stuff like that. Just leave it in their hands, and I’m sure it’ll be what’s best for the team,” he added.
The Leafs sit atop the Atlantic Division with a 38-20-3 record and 79 points, tied with the Florida Panthers, who hold a 38-21-3 record in 62 games. The Tampa Bay Lightning (36-21-4, 76 points) remain within striking distance. Finishing first would mean avoiding an unwanted first-round matchup against either Florida or Tampa Bay, instead drawing a wild-card team.
At this time of year, teams loading up for the postseason is expected. While the Leafs have yet to make a move, their biggest competition has been active.
Atlantic Division Rivals Loading Up
The Panthers and Lightning both strengthened their rosters ahead of the deadline. Florida acquired defenseman Seth Jones from the Chicago Blackhawks on Saturday (Chicago retains $2.5 million per year), while Tampa Bay made a blockbuster deal Wednesday, acquiring Oliver Bjorkstrand and Yanni Gourde from the Seattle Kraken as Seattle and Detroit each retained 50% on Gourde’s contract.
“When news comes out, obviously you hear about it and you see it,” said Matthews on Wednesday.
As mentioned, both teams secured salary cap retention in their respective transactions – something the Leafs would likely need to pursue with just $101,562 in cap space.
“We're all looking to better our team if we can. That's the best way I put it,” added head coach Craig Berube.
And it’s true. With Florida and Tampa each making significant moves ahead of the deadline, the pressure to add only continues to mount in Toronto. The Leafs’ biggest needs fall at the third-line center position and depth on defense in the wake of a handful of injury scares.
Considering their cap circumstances, the Leafs could entertain double retention in a deal, but it’d likely be costly at a steep price. The question becomes, what would the Leafs be willing to give up, and would it be worth it?
Treliving kept his cards close to the vest when discussing the deadline on Saturday.
“I'm not going to get into a whole lot about the deadline, other than to say we're going to try to help ourselves. We're going to try to improve our team. Now, that's pretty breaking news there, isn't it? So that's the trick is, you've got to determine sort of fact from fiction, what players are actually available. You know, you look around, there's still lots of teams in the race,” Treliving said.
“If I had to sort of categorize it, I think it's a little bit, hey, it's busy, you're talking to lots of guys. I would say, in comparison to years past, it's a little bit slower just because I think there are a lot more teams that maybe haven't declared yet, as in years past. So there's lots of conversations going on. But yeah, we would like, we'd certainly like to help ourselves. We'll see how things play out.”
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