'Nobody Expects Them Not To Do Things Before Puck Drops': Could Maple Leafs Still Move Nick Robertson After Contract Signing?

Although the Toronto Maple Leafs and Nick Robertson settled on a one-year, $1.825 million contract on Saturday, could the young forward still be on his way out?

It’s been a year since the 23-year-old requested a trade out of Toronto, and after a career year when it comes to goalscoring (15 goals in 69 games), Robertson will still have a difficult time cracking the lineup consistently with all of the Maple Leafs’ moves this summer.

Toronto added Nicolas Roy via a sign-and-trade with the Vegas Golden Knights for Mitch Marner right before free agency opened. The club also acquired Matias Maccelli and Dakota Joshua through trade.

According to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman on 32 Thoughts, there’s been chatter about Robertson potentially ending up with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

“I had a couple of people ask me about the possibility of Nick Robertson in Pittsburgh, just because obviously Kyle Dubas knows him,” said Friedman. 

“They got the arbitration settled on Saturday, $1.825 million. The Maple Leafs have to clear some bodies there, they’ve got a lot of them. I had one Columbus fan ask me if [Yegor] Chinakhov or Robertson made sense. I don’t know, I think Toronto would have to do more to get that done. 

“I definitely think that the Maple Leafs have work to do here, and I don’t know what their timeline is, but nobody expects them not to do things before puck drops, that’s for sure.”

Robertson was drafted by the Maple Leafs in the second round (53rd overall) in the 2019 NHL Draft and has often had challenges securing a full-time lineup spot with Toronto. He dealt with numerous injuries during his first couple of years in pro hockey, however, over time, the forward has put together a string of healthy seasons.

Robertson played 56 games in 2023-24, scoring 27 points (14 goals and 13 assists), before reaching a career-high in games-played this past season, with 22 points in 69 appearances. Although he did play more games in 2024-25, Robertson began this year’s playoffs in the lineup, but fell out of the group after two games in round one against the Ottawa Senators.

He finished the postseason with three games — two against Ottawa and one against the Florida Panthers in the second round — and two points (one goal and one assist). In 156 career NHL games, Robertson has put together 32 goals and 24 assists for 56 points.