Maple Leafs still feeling the effects of Brad Treliving two years later

Despite firing Brad Treliving, one of his biggest mistakes is still haunting the Maple Leafs even two years later: Letting Pontus Holmberg go.

There are a lot of negatives you can point to when it comes to Brad Treliving's tenure in Toronto. From a lack of urgency, to failed trades, to rushed deals and expensive contracts - it's safe to say his time wasn't exactly full of butterflies and rainbows.

It would be hard to pinpoint exactly which move was the worst, though trading Fraser Minten and a 1st for Brandon Carlo, and signing Ryan Reaves and Steven Lorentz to lucrative deals rank up there, his worst move may be the one that he never made.

Pontus Holmberg may be the mistake Toronto continually regrets

Back in the summer of 2025, Treliving had a few players who were expecting a qualifying offer, with one of them being Pontus Holmberg. Only 25 at the time, the defensively-focused forward was a solid PK piece and still growing into his own despite not hitting that next level just yet.

Instead, the team let him walk in free agency and he signed with the Tampa Bay Lightning Thriving in Tampa, he had 22 points in 71 games - a career-high - and managed to get some Selke consideration, finishing 40th.

As we come into the 2026-27 season, it feels like Holbmberg isn't slowing down anytime soon as he has two points in the first three games, including a sensational individual effort that led to a Tampa goal against Philadelphia:

-

If this was the kind of stuff that Holmberg was capable of but never got the chance to, then it was a failure on Toronto's behalf. Kyle Dubas drafted him for a reason, and while he wasn't a 20-goal scorer, he was a versatile piece who could play anywhere.

Toronto invested $16.5 million in their bottom-six when they didn't need to

Granted, the reason that John Chayka spent so much this summer was that players like Holmberg were gone but it should never have happened in the first place.

He only had 159 games in the NHL but already had 49 points, was a plus-15, had over 100 hits and 100 blocks each. Was he going to be the next superstar? Probably not, but he was as good a piece as any. His offensive ceiling is higher than Dakota Joshua's or Teddy Blueger's, he's younger, would cost less money, and keep Toronto a little bit younger.

With questions about their inability to exit the zone last year, Holmberg would have been an asset - not a hindrance. This year, he would have been able to save Toronto some money and give them the bottom six Swiss Army knife they needed.

But now, it's the Lightning who get the full benefit of Holmberg, and if he can break out offensively then they could have a dangerous two-way piece in the lineup. That's bad news for Toronto though frankly: It's all Brad Treliving's fault.

Also read on Hockey Patrol :
Michael Bunting signs new deal after weeks of interest from the Maple Leafs