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Did Maple Leafs Make a Mistake with the Scott Laughton Trade?
Scott Laughton has not played well for the Toronto Maple Leafs since joining the team and questions are being asked about it being a mistake.
When the Toronto Maple Leafs traded a first-round pick and prospect Nikita Grebenkin for Scott Laughton, they envisioned Laughton solidifying their third-line center role. However, just seven games into his run with Toronto, some fans are turning on the forward. There is still time, and patience is often a must when talking about a player coming over to a new team, but Laughton is struggling, raising early concerns about whether Toronto overpaid for his services and made a mistake with the trade.
Laughton wasn’t Plan A. The Maple Leafs swung hard on Mikko Rantanen and missed, forcing them to pivot and use their trade assets and limited cap space in other ways. The Leafs had been linked to Laughton, but when Treliving pulled out a trade for Laughton, and then later added Brandon Carlo from the Boston Bruins, it was a surprise.
Laughton’s arrival was met with optimism, as analysts all cited his personality and leadership on and off the ice. He was pegged as a guy you can put “anywhere”, he can play up and down the lineup and be defensively reliable, and he would provide secondary scoring. Instead, he has no points, just five shots on goal, and a minus-3 rating.
He started as the team’s third-line center but was quickly demoted to the fourth line,. When Laughton is on the ice, the Leafs are outscored 7-1 and outshot 47-20.
The Maple Leafs Have Made This Kind of Mistake Before
Luke Fox of Sportsnet points out that parallels to Toronto’s ill-fated Nick Foligno trade in 2021 are difficult to ignore. Toronto gave up a first-round pick for a high-character, defensively responsible forward who ultimately didn’t come anywhere close to meeting the expectations that came with that trade pricetag.
Unlike Foligno, Laughton is under contract for multiple seasons, so this isn’t a rental situation where he needs to be his best self immediately. It would help, however. The Leafs are heading toward the playoffs and need him to be the Laughton they thought they were getting from the Philadelphia Flyers.
Craig Berube, who previously coached Laughton in Philadelphia, believes the forward is trying to do too much. He said, “He’s overthinking things instead of just playing … He is from here. He has a lot going on with people and everything else. You want to please, right? He has to forget about pleasing and play.”
Fans in Toronto are now wondering how long it will take for Laughton to settle in and start producing. Given the price Toronto paid, he has to start contributing in more ways than he has.
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