There will be sacrifices involved in dividing the Core Four if the Toronto Maple Leafs are to effectively move past the notion that they constitute the team’s core and pursue a Stanley Cup together. Players like Mitch Marner, John Tavares, and others might complicate matters because they all have no-move clauses, which prevent them from being traded for any player the franchise might want to try out.
Thus, in order to implement the changes they believe are required, President Brendan Shanahan and General Brad Treliving will have to determine what they are ready to give up.
Why It’s Not Possible for the Leafs to Just Trade Someone
Although some Maple Leafs supporters have proposed trade scenarios that would benefit Toronto, they are conveniently ignoring one crucial detail: Even though Marner may think that the Maple Leafs should move on from him, no team is going to pay full price or make it simple for them to do so.
Top players have no movement clauses granted to them so that they have some say over where they end up. Marner is free to select two, three, or any number of teams. Additionally, if he chooses to select one, the Leafs will have the least amount of clout out of all the stakeholders. The “x” team can wait out Toronto if Marner decides he only wants to play for them, or the Leafs can say, “Okay, Moving the player and freeing up salary space to do other things is at least something. Even in that case, Toronto might have to accept a pay loss, accept the money back, or accept that after investing years in a player, they received far less in return than they had intended. The same is true for Tavares; fewer teams will be interested in the veteran because to his astronomically high salary.
What if Toronto Needs to Include Someone in the Agreement?
What would happen if Marner consents to transfer, the Leafs want to make a deal, and a team wants to sign him to an extension?
What if the Leafs offer a prospect or a draft pick in exchange for that team’s willingness to consider it? Should Toronto travel there? Alternatively, do they persist in their efforts to transfer the player without keeping any of their pay or forfeiting any selections or prospects in exchange? Teams who try to wait for the best deal frequently don’t get it, as history has proven.
There’s a chance a team will express interest in Marner, but Marner says his intention is to use his contract’s final season as a test of free agency. Should it occur, A) The team that will have to give up assets in order to get the forward in a single season and advance to the playoffs, or b) it will only be prepared to pay a rental fee in the case that Marner decides to walk. It implies they will want players such as Nick Robertson, Fraser Minten, or others to help pull off a transaction.
And in the event that a trade never happens?
The alternative is that Toronto is unable to locate a deal or a trading partner that they are happy with. Next, what happens? The management of the Maple Leafs was quite direct in stating that this specific configuration has not been successful. One more season with the same characters won’t be enough to regain the lost patience.
