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Maple Leafs trade chatter, insider reports, and roster speculation. Unconfirmed reports remain rumours until officially announced.
Maple Leafs News & Rumours: Plūminš, Bowen, Crocker, Ralph & New Era
There are a couple of interesting Toronto Maple Leafs stories worth looking at today, and neither one is really about Auston Matthews, William Nylander or the big names at the
The Maple Leafs Are Spending $32 Million on the Players Nobody Talks About
There’s an interesting thing hiding in the Toronto Maple Leafs’ salary numbers right now. Everybody looks at Auston Matthews at $13.25 million and William Nylander at $11.5 million and sees
Patrik Laine's NHL Future Down to 4 Teams
Patrik Laine has been skating a ton in South Florida, while his agent works the phone, searching for a contract for the upcoming season. Laine's the best forward, and biggest wildcard left on the free-agent market, and many around the league are surprised he's yet to sign a contract. Laine is coming off a five-game season, as the Montreal Canadiens essentially turned their backs on the Finnish forward in January, as he admitted he was healthy enough to play, but the team decided he wasn't an option for them down the stretch of the regular season, and into the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Laine's been training a ton in Florida, which is causing many around the league to feel the Tampa Bay Lightning and Florida Panthers are linked. The Panthers are going to be without Brad Marchand to start next year, so there's a hole in their lineup to fill. With the winning, and hard-working culture in Florida, it could be a great place for Laine to turn the page on his career, and play some meaningful hockey, for once. Patrik Laine is skating in South Florida as speculation about his next #NHL stop starts heating up. It’s being reported he could end up in Tampa. Last week Toronto and Dallas were being reported as suitors. Tampa? South Florida? Toronto? Dallas? Somewhere else? Wherever he… https://t.co/0IWdj40yGD pic.twitter.com/GaKClVJqJy Dobber (@DobberHockey) August 18, 2026 Tampa Bay also seems like a great fit, as head coach Jon Cooper could be the exact thing needed for Laine to finally reach his maximum potential. They lost Nick Paul up front, and have some holes to fill, and adding a scoring threat like Laine could go a long way. Two other teams linked to Laine recently are the Toronto Maple Leafs and Dallas Stars. Both teams don't have a ton of cap space to work with, as the Leafs are currently over the cap, but have Max Domi likely heading to LTIR, and Dakota Joshua on the trade market. Laine isn't expected to sign anything more than a one-year deal full of incentives, that would count against the 2027-28 salary cap. The Stars are in need of more scoring up front, and have several Fins who are very familiar to Laine, which could lead to an easier transition. Dallas is also a great place to hide from the wild media noise if things don't go as planned, a much smarter option than joining the Leafs. Where will Laine end up? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
John Tavares tax fight exposes a broader NHL battle with the CRA
The John Tavares tax saga in Toronto just got a lot more interesting thanks to a recent development involving Bill Daly.
Toronto could eventually be home to a second NHL franchise
The NHL might eventually turn expansion talks to Toronto, though it's unclear if the conversation will ever get to that point.
Maple Leafs Could Regret Trading Morgan Rielly
The Toronto Maple Leafs could actually regret trading Morgan Rielly, when considering the various skills he still brings to the team. The post Maple Leafs Could Regret Trading Morgan Rielly appeared first on HEAVY .
Gavin McKenna’s “Disappointing” College Season Might Be What the Maple Leafs Needed
For a player who had been described as a potentially generational talent, the Toronto Maple Leafs rookie Gavin McKenna s first season at Penn State was strangely easy to criticize. McKenna
3 Potential Trade Destinations for Maple Leafs' Philippe Myers
Toronto Maple Leafs general manager John Chayka has made some significant upgrades this summer, which means the internal competition for roster spots heading into training camp is quite fierce. On the back end of the Leafs roster, Philippe Myers has been pushed down the depth chart, and is now on the trade block. Chayka has added Darren Raddysh, Emil Andrae, and the Leafs are welcoming back Chris Tanev with open arms, add in Morgan Rielly avoiding an offseason trade, and the numbers aren't on Myers' side. There's also Leafs' prospect Ben Danford, who the organization loves, and is likely someone who's knocking at the door for NHL minutes as soon as this season. Myers is in a bad spot, and if he's looking for an NHL job, it's not likely coming in Toronto. The 6-foot-6 defenceman has one year left on his contract at $850,000, so it's a very manageable cap hit for just about every team to add in. Myers appeared in 39 games last year for the Leafs, chipping in with two points. In 233 NHL games, he's posted 10 goals and 43 points, and has always left team's wanting more based on his size and skating abilities. Myers could very well be on the move ahead or during training camp next month, and if Chayka does give him a change of scenery he likely desires, expect to see the Philadelphia Flyers, Anaheim Ducks, and Montreal Canadiens having trade interest. Especially the Flyers and Ducks, as both teams' are becoming desperate for NHL defencemen, and while it won't be a mega-deal, Chayka and the Leafs could add a solid depth forward in return to help out their AHL Toronto Marlies. Myers on the move, don't be shocked to see it happening soon.
Philadelphia Flyers Continue To Make Trade Offers
The Philadelphia Flyers have had quite the offseason, and there's plenty of rumors going around that general manager Daniel Briere has been working the phones. According to multiple reports, the Flyers are shopping for defencemen, and recently, have been very aggressive with their trade offers. Briere turned the NHL on it's head this summer by signing Leo Carlsson to a lucrative offer sheet, and reportedly since, has been laser focused on trying to land NHL proven blueliners. Marco D'Amico: Re Flyers: They've been looking for a defenseman all summer, they were in on John Carlsson, they were very interested in Darnell Nurse, I've been told they've kicked tires on Alexander Romanov. The Flyers have $13.7 million in cap space to work with, so Briere can be creative as he'd like. They also have six draft picks in the first four rounds of next year's draft, and they also have two first-round picks the year after. Throw in some talented young forwards, intriguing top prospects, and Briere shouldn't have any issues tracking down some talent. The issue becomes who's available, and the latest rumor is a move with the Montreal Canadiens about Arber Xhekaj. The restricted free-agent defenceman is one of the toughest customers in the league, and seems to have Flyers' hockey written all over him. There's also Zach Whitecloud in Calgary, who many teams have inquired about, but so far the Flames haven't budged. On a lesser scale, the Toronto Maple Leafs are open to moving former Flyer, Philippe Myers, so perhaps there's a smaller deal to be completed there. Briere is making offers, we'll see if he adds some more talent before training camp.
Panthers Could Have Marchand's Replacement In Free Agency
The Florida Panthers have a real hole to fill with Brad Marchand sidelined, and one might already be sitting on the open market. The Panthers are the most likely landing spot for unrestricted free agent winger Michael Bunting, and they could sign him to a one-year deal in Florida specifically to cover for Marchand. Florida Needs A Fix Marchand underwent unexpected hip and sports hernia surgery late in the summer and could miss six to 10 games to start the season, with an earliest possible return around mid-October. The bigger problem is what it does to Florida's books. The Panthers are sitting on just over $34,000 in cap space, all but eliminating any realistic trade option and pushing the front office toward the bargain bin. The Hockey News' Ryan Lambert laid out Florida's actual options: work the waiver wire and hope something usable clears, sign Bunting outright, or simply gut it out internally until Marchand returns. Lambert leaned toward the front two, with Bunting as the more realistic fit given the money already works. Bunting Fits The Profile Bunting checks the boxes Florida typically looks for. As Lambert put it, "Michael Bunting, who remains unsigned, seems like the kind of player that can find a role in Florida's system. At this point in the summer, it probably won't be too difficult to make the money work. This is, without a doubt, a useful NHL player." He's coming off a rough stretch, though. Bunting posted just 14 goals and 33 points with a minus-24 rating in 74 games with the Dallas Stars last season, numbers well below the 23-goal seasons that first made him a name in Toronto. He's bounced from the Maple Leafs to Carolina to Pittsburgh to Nashville to Dallas over the past four years, and his lingering injury concerns from late last season likely limit him to a one-year deal regardless of destination. Still, a physical, pesky third-line winger who can chip in scoring is exactly the archetype that's defined Florida's championship identity, and with the Panthers having already moved on from several complementary veterans this offseason to address other needs, a role should be available. With Marchand's return date uncertain and Florida's cap situation leaving little room to maneuver, expect the Panthers to move quickly on a low-cost veteran once training camp gets closer.