Maple Leafs Acquire Conor Timmins from Coyotes

The Toronto Maple Leafs improved their depleted blue line on Wednesday afternoon, acquiring Conor Timmins from the Arizona Coyotes in exchange for 22-year-old prospect Curtis Douglas.

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Timmins, 24, has been on the block for some time as he has failed to become a regular in the Coyotes lineup. The 2017 second-round draft pick (32 overall) has played in two games with the ‘Yotes this season. He has played an additional six with the Tucson Roadrunners of the American Hockey League (AHL), logging three assists and 12 penalty minutes.

The fact the Leafs were the team to trade for Timmins comes as little surprise, as they have been decimated by injuries on the back end this season. They are currently without three of their best in Morgan Rielly, Jake Muzzin, and T.J. Brodie, all of whom are expected to miss significant time. Suffice it to say, this is a team who needed all the help they could get, and Kyle Dubas did what he could with limited cap space.

As mentioned, headed back the other way is Douglas. The six-foot-nine centerman was originally a Dallas Stars fourth-round selection (106 overall) back in 2018, but has yet to get in any NHL action through his professional career. That said, he showed some promise a year ago in the AHL with the Toronto Marlies, scoring 13 goals and 34 points in 67 games. The Coyotes, who are in the early stages of a major rebuild, will have plenty of time to be patient with him and hope he can eventually develop into a regular at the NHL level.

The Maple Leafs are in action later tonight against the New Jersey Devils, which is likely too soon for Timmins to make his debut. That said, he could get the call on Friday night in a road tilt versus the Minnesota Wild.

Why Did the Coyotes Move Timmins At All?

Craig Morgan, who covers the Coyotes, noted, “They [Coyotes]wanted to waive Timmins to send him to Tucson where he could play a lot of games, minutes & situations, all things they felt he needed but wasn’t going to get right now in the NHL. Problem was, they were certain he was going to be claimed so they acquired an asset who will likely play 3C with the Roadrunners. It’s hard giving up on a big, young RHD. Injuries have limited Timmins, 24, to 8 NHL games in 2 seasons w/AZ (41 total); still don’t know what he is.”

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