Insider Ranks Maple Leafs' Top Trade Assets Ahead of Crucial Deadline Decisions

The Toronto Maple Leafs will most likely make a trade at the deadline, and NHL Insider Jonas Siegel has now ranked their best assets to getting a deal done.

It's been speculated for months that the Maple Leafs are going to make a deal, and recent reports have revealed that the team are expected to be big-time players at the deadline in order to improve their roster.

NHL Insider Jonas Siegel knows as well as we do the team is going to make a deal, but will they have enough to get it done?

In a recent article, Siegel ranked the best potential trade pieces for the Maple Leafs from their best chances to getting a deal done, to absolutely no chance.

So let's take a look at what Siegel has to say about the Leafs assets.

Starting off with the top tier, Siegel names two pieces: Easton Cowan and Toronto's 2027 1st round pick.

Toronto would be hard-pressed to trade away their most exciting prospect unless it was for a concrete bet, like Cozens. Even Brayden Schenn or Brock Nelson aren't worth the cost of giving up a player with the potential of Cowan.

Brad Treliving can't afford to give up the future for three months of success, and giving that much money to an aging veteran is only going to handicap an ever-aging roster.

Cowan isn't moving unless Toronto is completely blown away; or insane.

Toronto would be able to give up their first rounders if they knew they were getting a future star in return, but with a brand new team five years from now; could that pick translate into a superstar?

Is it worth risking a future stud for the chance to win now, when even that's far from a guarantee?

I'd argue yes, but if Toronto loses out on Mitch Marner and adding the right pieces, them losing that pick makes their future even more questionable.

Siegel's second tier involves Fraser Minten, and the 2026 1st rounder. Minten is more of an NHL-ready product however projects to be less of an offensive star than Cowan.

He relies on solid positioning, high IQ, and an active defensive game to help his team, and he's shown he'e serviceable now in the NHL and can grow into a very respectable center a la Scott Laughton.

Minten earned a 15-game stint this season and added four points, so while the offense is a work in progress; Toronto was still impressed.

Toronto would be more inclined to trade next year's first rounder as the window to win isn't going to be as shut as it will be in 2027.

It's going to take a lot for Toronto to part with the pick, and only if a player like Noah Dobson or Dylan Cozens is acquirable should they look to part with either Minten or the pick.

The third grouping includes five pieces and considered ones that Toronto should be inclined to listen to if there's interest: Ben Danford, Artur Akhtyamov, Dennis Hildeby, Nikita Grebenkin, and the 2025 second-round pick.

Danford is Toronto's most recent selection, and while he's an exciting prospect, he's definitely going to be a more defensively sound player and projects to be a second or third pairing blueliner.

Akhtyamov and Hildeby are interesting as both men are coming up as future goaltenders for the team after Anthony Stolarz gets older, and there's genuine promise for Akhtyamov's career.

But Toronto also has a logjam in net, and with so many prospects all of a sudden who are actually worth their weight, they could afford to part with one of them. Hildeby has NHL experience, but Akhtyamov has more upside.

Grebenkin would hurt fans if he left, as he endeared himself with his humorous and candid attitude. He's a very fun player to watch and has the size and offensive capabilities to do well, he just needs time.

But if a team is excited about any of these players' potential, Toronto shouldn't hesitate to jump on a deal as long as the return fits their needs.

Getting toward the bottom is the fourth level, where the assets start to thin out dramatically with only Nick Robertson, Pontus Holmberg, and their 2025 third-rounder.

Robertson should have been traded months ago on hype, and hasn't done much in his time with Toronto (though he did have two goals against Chicago on Sunday).

He's still young and has a lot of potential, but he doesn't fit with the team, and having gone through two coaches with drastically different styles; perhaps it's not them that's the issue.

Holmberg hasn't been what Toronto expected since they drafted him, and he's been unable to put together the 15-20 goal season needed, nor has his defense or general play been above average.

He's a capable third or fourth line player, and much like Robertson won't fetch much value.

The third-rounder is just a sweetener at this point as there's no guarantees and clearly the lower the pick, the thinner the draft pool.

The last tier is basically a mishmash of struggling players who have very little value and you'd have to do a medical checkup on whichever GM decided to trade for them.

Max Domi, David Kampf, Topi Niemala, Marshall Rifai, Conor Timmins.

Yikes.

Domi's way too expensive, is terrible defensively, couldn't hit the broadside of a barn with his shot, and isn't capable of playing more than third or fourth line minutes at this point in his career; and at $5M it's just wasted money.

Kampf has actually been serviceable for the Leafs as a fourth line center and has solid defensive metrics and penalty killing ability. He lacks offensive punch, but can score a bit though we haven't seen much here.

The main reason he'd be dumped is his $2.4M salary, which is way too expensive for what he offers.

Timmins has just been bad. I'm sorry, but it's frustrating watching him be consistently out of position and letting the opposition get their chances in.

He doesn't score, he looks lost at times, and he hasn't proven he's good enough. Philippe Myers is better; heck, I'd argue that Matt Benning in the AHL could be a better replacement for him.

Speaking of the AHL, both Niemala and Rifai are two defensemen who haven't found their spot in the Maple Leafs lineup although they've been in their system a bit.

Niemala is an undersized defenseman who while offensively gifted, but doesn't fit the current structure Toronto is going for, meanwhile Rifai has just not shown that he should be called upon to be a fix for their blueline.

Toronto would need to find a desperate team who is looking to really fast-track a rebuild if they added these players, and while the AHL players may have promise; the team is stuck with Domi, Kampf and Timmins.

Whichever assets Brad Treliving and the Maple Leafs decide to part with, it's going to be telling how much they value winning over their future.

if we see Easton Cowan headed out, there's only one thing on his mind and that's winning. But if we see him work some magic and fill the holes without sacrificing too much: Then the best asset Toronto has is Brad Treliving himself.

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