Darren Dreger poured ice-cold water on any potential Kirill Marchenko trade to Toronto given that it's unlikely they can afford the forward's expected salary.
Dreger appeared on TSN's FirstUp on Monday and was pressed about any news pertaining to a potential Kirill Marchenko trade.
Marchenko deal is going to cost far too much
The Blue Jackets star has been adamant about wanting a deal elsewhere, especially without a contract in place; exactly why Dreger believes a trade won't materialize:
The problem with it is, whether it's Montreal or Toronto or any team that would express interest in him, what's that contract look like, fellas? Like, it's bad enough that you got to give up the assets for Marchenko, and they would be significant.
Like, they would tear away probably at the core of your team. One of your better younger players. Then, on top of that, you gotta come up with, what, 12M a year? Something along those lines to get that contract signed. So, tricky business for Waddell & Columbus these days.
We touched previously on Marchenko as a fit in Toronto despite being such an expensive piece to acquire, and it seems like Dreger's comments only solidify that bringing him aboard is going to cost a lot.
If the Maple Leafs wanted to add Marchenko to the fold then that's going to cost them a heavy price. You're looking at potentially Easton Cowan, Ben Danford, or eventually relent and offer someone like Matthew Knies.
Adding Marchenko would help Toronto at a severe cost
Marchenko, 26, had 27 goals and 67 points in 76 games for the Blue Jackets last season, and has amassed 102 goals and 208 points in 292 career games. Drafted 49th overall in 2018, Marchenko has emerged as one of Columbus' top offensive weapons, and has averaged 52 points so far in his young career.
If the team was concerned about not getting enough scoring then Marchenko would certainly help with that, but there's no room for him.
Even if the team were to deal Knies' $7.75M contract away, that's still not going to cover a future deal, plus the team needs to make up another $4 or $5-million dollars to cover the rest.
All of that is too much for John Chayka to try and navigate especially with how much the team invested in their current group. If there was a world where Marchenko could come in, it's less likely the team would have spent so much on the bottom-six and defence.
You're giving up too much either with Knies, a combination of prospects like Cowan and Danford, draft picks, or some measure of all three and while Marchenko is good, sometimes things are just a bit too expensive to warrant spending a fortune on.
Do you think Kirill Marchenko would be worth the price for the Maple Leafs?
Also read on Hockey Patrol :
19-year-old Maple Leafs prospect delivers stunning disappointment during preseason tilt