The Toronto Maple Leafs may consider moving on from some of their existing top players, as there are question marks about what the organization will do with the remainder of its roster during the off-season.
When recently looking at trade ideas, Heavy Sports proposed an intriguing one for them to not only save money, but also land intriguing youngsters.
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Their trade idea would move on from Morgan Rielly in a deal with the Detroit Red Wings, sending three players and a pick to the Maple Leafs.
Red Wings acquire: Morgan Rielly
Maple Leafs acquire: Ben Chiarot, Sebastian Cossa, Eddie Genborg, conditional 3rd-round 2026 draft pick
“The Maple Leafs would acquire Ben Chiarot, a 6-foot-3, 224 lb defender. The 34-year-old was drafted 120th overall in 2009 by the Atlanta Thrashers before they relocated and became the Winnipeg Jets. He recorded 13 points and 127 hits in 81 games.
“They would also add goalie Sebastian Cossa. The 22-year-old was selected 15th overall in 2021. The Red Wings prospect stands 6-foot-6 and weighs 229 lbs. In the 2024-25 season, he recorded 15 wins in 41 AHL games. The youngster also recorded a 2.45 goals against average (GAA), a .911 save percentage (SV%), and one shutout,” Caleb Kerney wrote.
Clearly, there's still plenty that has to happen over the next few months for the Maple Leafs to make any final decisions.
However, if the organization decides to adopt a younger approach, which seems possible given the current situation, it may view this type of trade as a positive one.
If the Maple Leafs still want to compete next year, moving on from somebody like Rielly might not be the best plan, however.