The Toronto Maple Leafs were interested in bringing one of their former prospects back home.
The Dallas Stars traded forward Mason Marchment to the Seattle Kraken on Thursday for a 2026 third-rounder and a 2025 fourth-round pick. The 30-year-old scored 22 goals and 25 assists in 62 games last season, and is entering the final year of a four-year, $18 million contract he signed with Dallas in July 2022.
According to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, the Maple Leafs desired the player but were disappointed to see the forward remain in the Western Conference with the Kraken. "The Maple Leafs wanted Mason Marchment, and were disappointed not to get him," Friedman wrote.
Standing at 6-foot-5, Marchment was an AHL signing after going undrafted. He signed an AHL deal with the Toronto Marlies in April 2016 and spent a year bouncing between the ECHL and AHL before winning the Calder Cup with Toronto in 2018.
Marchment signed a two-year entry-level contract just before the playoffs on March 17, 2018. After playing just four NHL games in 2019-20, the Maple Leafs traded Marchment to the Florida Panthers for Denis Malgin in February 2020.
Since leaving the Maple Leafs organization, the Uxbridge, Ontario native has had a strong NHL career. Marchment had a breakout season in 2021-22, scoring 18 goals and 29 assists for 47 points in 54 games with the Panthers.
Following that season, he joined the Stars, continuing to put up strong numbers. Marchment's best season in the NHL came in 2023-24, where he scored 53 points — 22 goals and 31 assists — in 81 games.
While Toronto was interested in bringing Marchment back to Toronto, it's no surprise to see him go to the Kraken. After all, Seattle is one of the few NHL teams that don't have a state tax. Stars GM Jim Nill likely didn't want the Stars to get the reputation of signing a state tax-free deal and then shipping a player off to a place with higher taxes.
After signing center Matt Duchene to a four-year, $18 million contract, Dallas was forced to part ways with one of its players. Had Toronto acquired him, it would've been fascinating to see Marchment's deployment under Maple Leafs head coach Craig Berube.
Another interesting tidbit from Friedman was the sentence following Toronto's interest in Marchment: "Toronto wild-card: to replace Marner, could they move a defenceman to get a forward?" He added.
Morgan Rielly carries a $7.5 million cap hit for the next five seasons. Ultimately, he has a no-move clause and expressed his desire to remain a Maple Leaf during locker cleanout day. Could Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving try to sway him into waving his no-move clause?
Toronto also has Jake McCabe (signed for five more years at a $4.513 million cap hit, with a no-trade), Chris Tanev (five years at $4.5 million, with a no-move), Oliver Ekman-Larsson (three years at $3.5 million, 16 no-team trade list), Brandon Carlo (two years at $3.485 million, 8-team no-trade list), Simon Benoit (two more years at $1.3 million), and Philippe Myers (two years at $850,000).
