Maple Leafs News & Analysis

Maple Leafs defence pairings for 2026-27 hinge on Darren Raddysh's partner. Jake McCabe is the right answer, even at the cost of the Tanev pair.

Toronto's third letter has sat empty since Marner left. The William Nylander alternate captain case costs Jim Hiller nothing and is long overdue.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson led all Maple Leafs defencemen in scoring last season on a $3.5M cap hit — and is now being discussed as a cap casualty. That is backwards.

Bruce Boudreau says the Maple Leafs defence will keep Toronto out of the playoffs. We test the claim against the ages, the 84-game grind and Hiller's plan.

Morgan Rielly praised John Chayka's direct approach. It marks a real shift in how the Maple Leafs handle players — and a bill that comes due by February.

A Quinn Hughes contract near $20 million would reset the NHL defence market. What that means for Darren Raddysh, Morgan Rielly and the Leafs' blue line.

The Morgan Rielly role, not the trade, is now Toronto's live question. Raddysh has the power play and McCabe the tough minutes. Where does $7.5 million fit?

NHL no-move clauses ran the 2026 trade market. Tkachuk, Larkin and Werenski all proved it — and John Chayka built Toronto's summer around that reality.

The Quinn Hughes contract extension is still unsigned in Minnesota. Why the reported holdup matters to Toronto — and why the Leafs cannot win that market.

The Maple Leafs two-year window is written into the cap sheet and the traded first-round picks. Here is what Chayka can still do before camp.

Toronto's toughest contracts total roughly $15 million for a fourth-line centre, a fourth-line winger and a 32-year-old defenceman. That is the whole margin.

The Brian Burke Hall of Fame induction lands Nov. 9 in Toronto. An honest accounting of a Maple Leafs tenure that failed and still shapes the roster.

Bruce Boudreau says the Maple Leafs' aging defence will miss the playoffs. The 84-game grind makes the concern real, but the diagnosis is only half right.

The Maple Leafs offseason drew harsh national reviews. The forward reshuffle was sound and McKenna a windfall — but the top-four defence hole earns the grade.

Opinion: Chayka rebuilt the Maple Leafs defence's depth and the crease this summer, but the top four is older and thinner. That is the unfinished job.

Martin Biron's Maple Leafs Atlantic Division prediction has Toronto second. For a team that finished 8th and is trading Rielly, that's a tier too rich.

Opinion: The Morgan Rielly trade needn't happen this summer. Toronto should hold the line on retention and sell from strength — or wait for the deadline.

The Morgan Rielly trade market shrank as San Jose bowed out for Trouba and Nurse, leaving Toronto a thinner field and less leverage.