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Maple Leafs Depth Destroyed? A Shocking Number of Picks Given Up
Toronto’s depth issues aren’t bad luck — they’re the result of years of aggressive trades and lost draft picks. Now what for the Maple Leafs?
The Toronto Maple Leafs didn’t lose their depth overnight — they traded it away piece by piece, year after year, until the bottom of their roster was held together by PTOs and bargain-bin additions. And when Sean Avery went on Spittin’ Chiclets and said the Leafs “have zero depth,” he was told something that shocked him. Avery wasn’t aware that the team had traded 40 picks and seven first-rounders since Auston Matthews joined the team. His response was, simply, “Is that true?”
The staggering stat is almost too insane to believe: since Auston Matthews entered the league, Toronto has moved an enormous amount of draft capital. Ryan Whitney pointed out that the Leafs have burned through 40 draft picks, a pace that rivals only a few desperate contenders. And what do they have to show for it? It appears the Maple Leafs are worse than they have been in years, and Avery says they have no identity.
The proof that the Leafs might have tackled their roster construction poorly is playing out in real time this season. Mitch Marner is gone, Matthews is injured, the defense is atrocious, and the depth on the roster is questionable. “If guys are coming in and making the team on PTOs,” he argued, “you have zero depth.” He’s not wrong.
Related: Insiders Provide Clarity on the Nature of Auston Matthews’ Injury
The fact that Nick Kypreos was speaking this week about the potential the Maple Leafs might have to look at a Matthews trade should tell fans everything they need to know.
Where Do the Maple Leafs Go From Here?.. A Rebuild?
Toronto’s lack of identity and inability to answer questions about its roster and why it’s struggling so poorly means that the Maple Leafs could be in jeopardy of missing the playoffs. If that happens, expect the word rebuild to circulate this organization.
The Leafs went all in, trying to acquire players to push, and now they are paying the bill. They have fewer internal options, nothing to call upon when injuries and situations go south, and a team that looks noticeably worse than it did three or four years ago.
The Leafs didn’t intend to sabotage their future, but they might have. They gambled it all on the belief that Matthews, Marner, Nylander, and Tavares could drag them somewhere meaningful. That didn’t happen, and those pieces are either aging out, hurt, or leaving.
When Avery said imagine where this Leafs team would be without John Tavares, that was a sign that things aren’t alright. As good as Tavares is, he was not supposed to be the lifeline and driver for the team this season.
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