One of the more pressing questions over the past couple of seasons was whether forward Mitch Marner would re-sign with the Toronto Maple Leafs. The fans were in disbelief when Marner played out his contract, and signed a new deal as part of a sign-and-trade with the Vegas Golden Knights.
The return was not what one expected as Toronto got forward Nicolas Roy in return. However, the lineup for the upcoming season does not look nearly as threatening as general manager Brad Treliving did little to replace that production.
Maple Leafs' Treliving settles for depth pieces
Trelibving did make some moves and signed free agents but they do not add up to the production when Marner was traded. Coming to the Maple Leafs is Matias Maccelli from the Utah Mammoth in exchange for a 2027 third-round pick. Also acquired was defenseman Henry Thrun from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for forward Ryan Reaves. Those are the moves he made after the Marner deal was finalized. It had to get better in free agency right?
Trliving made tow free agent signings in forwards Michael Pezzetta and Benoit Olivier-Groulx. That's it. Those are the only names he signed and they will likely join the Toronto Mariles of the American Hockey League (AHL).
Where do the Maple Leafs go from here?
When talking about the additions to the roster for the 2025-26 season, Maccelli could be a nice pickup. He would fit in nicely let's say on the first or second line and produce some nice numbers. He will not replace the offensive production that Marner brought but it is another forward who can do some things in the offensive zone.
Treliving has time to make this roster as scary as it was the past few seasons. They still have John Tavares, Auston Matthews, and William Nylander. However, a few impact players need to be brought in to replace the offense lost by the Marner trade. The offense will not be made up with the same roster the way it is currently constructed. Treliving needs to make some trades to get more scoring in this lineup and if not they could be in trouble.
They could not win a Stanley Cup with Marner and now that he is gone the expectations can not be the same. So far Treliving has failed to make this team better and, in fact, may have made them worse. Toronto still has a legit top three in Matthews, Nylander, and Tavares but they need help. A lot of big names are off the board and the Maple Leafs are struggling to find answers to make this team better in three short months. Time is ticking on putting a good group together to once again chase Lord Stanley.