In Leafs Land, trade buzz never stops. I imagine it’s like how Yankees fans in New York feel, or Cowboys fans in Dallas, or Lakers fans in LA. Every rumor is scrutinized, criticized, put under a microscope, and closely followed. It’s fun.
Most of these rumors either seem so far out there that they exist in the realm of fantasy (suuuuuuure Mikko Rantanen will be a Leaf next year) or so minor that only the most die-hard of fans will much care. But in the past few days, one rumor has risen to the top of the pile, representing a real impact player with a reasonable path to acquire him.
I’m talking, of course, about Buffalo Sabres center Dylan Cozens.
The Leafs need a center. Check. Preferably a big, physical one who can anchor the third line and provide offense for a team that badly needs it. Check.
The Workhorse from Whitehorse could be that guy.
Dylan Cozens Career Stats
(Courtesy of www.hockeydb.com)
Why I think a trade to the Leafs could happen
Well, as mentioned, Cozens fills a role that the Leafs badly need going into the playoffs. Secondary scoring from the center position. The Leafs have had Matthews, Tavares, and a whole lot of nothing down the middle all season, and at times, they’ve been one injury away from having Pontus Holmberg as the 2C. That’s frankly unacceptable for a team of the Maple Leafs caliber, and a center should be the first acquisition the team makes ahead of the March 7 trade deadline. Cozens could theoretically be acquired at a relative bargain: his stats over the past two years do not match his contract, and the Sabres are again in flux, with the potential to tear it all down again and start over. Cozens’s stats since entering the NHL in 2020-21 are a bit of a disappointment for a player drafted 7th overall, but there are a few caveats: with the Sabres have iced bad teams through his entire career, and he hasn’t had the benefit of playing with especially great linemates. Indeed, in his best season (22-23), he largely played with rookies JJ Peterka and Jack Quinn, and despite being barely older than either, he lit it up, with 31 goals. A change of scenery could unlock his talent further, with better linemates and/or a lower spot in the lineup, where he could feast on third line matchups.
Finally, there’s an argument to be made that every year that the Leafs have this core, they should be going all in. Last year, Treliving faced criticisms of not making big enough swings at the trade deadline. The Leafs lost in game 7 of the first round. The year before, Kyle Dubas stole the show at the deadline, making numerous impact moves…and the Leafs got the first round monkey off their backs as a result. With a team this good, it’s sometimes necessary to throw caution to the winds.
Why I think a trade to the Leafs won’t happen
Stop me if you’ve heard this before: The Leafs don’t have the cap space.
The roster is, as usual, up against the cap this season, and have needed to perform cap gymnastics to keep the roster at the 88 million dollar threshold. Cozens is signed long-term at a not insignificant AAV of 7.1 million per year. Of course, the salary cap is poised to rise significantly, but the Leafs have looming contract situations with key players John Tavares, Mitch Marner, and Matthew Knies. Tavares should take a big pay cut, but any leftover money should probably go straight to Knies. If Marner leaves, the team could no doubt afford Cozens, but that’s obviously a regression in terms of talent. And if the team picks up Cozens but loses Knies, that’s not a huge step forward either, as Knies is a power forward on pace for 30 goals this year (a mark Cozens has hit only once).
All that to say: The Maple Leafs would need to get extremely creative to make this work, offloading some of their less desirable contracts while trying not to completely sell the farm to acquire Cozens.
Potential trade package for Cozens
To the Leafs: C Dylan Cozens
To the Sabres: RW Easton Cowan, LW Nick Robertson, C Max Domi, C David Kampf, 2026 1st round pick
Bear with me here. To absorb Cozens’s salary, the Leafs have to move off of salary of their own, and the team is top-heavy as it is. Domi and Kampf are respected veterans but have not contributed enough to justify their contracts, and the Leafs have cheaper options on the Marlies that can arguably produce similarly (Looking at you, Fraser Minten). For the Sabres, the 1st round pick and Cowan are the big gets here. Cowan’s been buzzing around OHL London, with an almost 70 game point streak going. An underwhelming World Juniors tournament for Canada shouldn’t scare teams off-he’s legit. The Sabres also get to roll the dice on Robertson, who’s a spark plug but has never really gotten going in Toronto. A smaller market team that puts him on a skill line might be the key to unlocking him.
Full disclaimer: If a highly paid Maple Leaf hits the LTIR for any reason before the trade deadline (knock on wood that this doesn’t happen), the Leafs should make a more prospect-heavy deal and keep Domi and Kampf. A player like Ben Danford, for example, might sweeten the pot for the Sabres, while the Leafs wouldn’t need to tank their forward depth and could worry about the contracts in the off-season. But as is, to acquire Cozens, they’ll need to move some cap.
What do you think? Should the Leafs trade for Cozens? What are your mock trades? Leave a comment below!
Leave a Reply