Defenseman Matt Benning's Fate Confirmed After Being Waived by the Toronto Maple Leafs

When Toronto traded Timothy Liljegren to the San Jose Sharks, the main goal was to alleviate cap space and acquire some assets in return. One of those assets was Matt Benning, a 30-year old depth defenseman who has a rich family history in the NHL.

Benning never played for the Maple Leafs, as GM Brad Treliving tried to work out a deal for him but it never materialized. Toronto needs roster space and cap room, they're running out of options and only one choice was clear.

Placing the defenseman on waivers, Toronto was hopeful that a team may possibly want to claim him to add to their depth, but unfortunately, that wasn't the case as Benning cleared waivers on Tuesday afternoon.

Per Elliotte Friedman on X, the Toronto defenseman cleared waivers and now the team has a decision to make:

Toronto now has a couple of options. First, they can assign Benning to the Marlies if they intend on keeping him for a potential emergency, and would help remove his cap hit.

Second, they can talk with Benning about his ability to request a player release and mutually part ways, giving Benning a chance to choose if and where he wants to play, and gives Toronto space.

Well it seems Brad Treliving doesn't want to let him go just yet, as Benning has been reassigned to the Toronto Marlies per the Maple Leafs official PR account on X:

For what it's worth, Benning isn't a terrible player by any means, but is a depth defenseman in the NHL. He can be called upon to be a capable defender as well as chip in offensively, but he hasn't done much to warrant a consistent place on the Top 6.

For his career he has 464 games with 102 points in that span, and averages over 16 minutes as well, proving he can play if called upon. His best season came in 2022-23 when he had 24 points and averaged nearly 20 minutes a night; a drastic fall off from current day.

Hopefully he can get acquainted with the Marlies and be a part of their monstrous season, as the team is sitting at a 7-1-2 record and have been a powerhouse and doing it with under 100 PIM for the entire team, a great sign for the future.