No Prospect Is Safe? The Maple Leafs Trade Conversation Heating Up
The Daily Faceoff's Steven Ellis was a guest of Leafs Morning Take and boldly stated that no Maple Leafs prospect is untouchable as trade talks start to heat up.
While there isn't a ton of excitement around the Maple Leafs future pipeline as a whole, there are still some very intriguing and potential impact players who could find themselves as mainstays in the coming years.
The two biggest prospects in the system are Easton Cowan and Ben Danford, with the former having a lot of hype given his accomplishments and offensive potential. Danford is less flashy and will be more of a shutdown, hardworking defenseman who doesn't mind getting into the dirtier areas of the game.
They are expected to be a big part of the future especially as Toronto's aging roster tends to move on either to other teams or eventually retirement.
However, they are in a win-now mode and much like other years, there has been the potential for them to deal away their future for the chance for immediate success.
Why the Maple Leafs' Prospect Pool Is Suddenly at the Center of Trade Talk
Which is why The Daily Faceoff's Steven Ellis believes that nobody in the Maple Leafs system has a firm chance of sticking around; and no one is off the books.
Appearing as a guest on Leafs Morning Take recently, Ellis was asked if Danford was one of those players who was considered untouchable when it comes to a trade and the prospect analyst was bold in his claim that not only was Danford available if needed - so was Cowan:
There is not a single untouchable prospect in the Toronto Maple Leafs pipeline. Every single one of them should be available for trade and Ben Danford is no exception because there are a lot of teams who would love to have him.
Given where Toronto is, you're expected to be competitive for a few more years right? You're doing that you're looking at the Florida Panthers; that's a team that's not promoting their young guys, they are bringing in veteran depth.
Tampa Bay, Colorado, those are teams that have also been through that grind that did the same thing.
I don't know if Danford's timeline lines up when Toronto is going to be at its peak competitiveness level.
Given where Toronto is, you're expected to be competitive for a few more years right? You're doing that you're looking at the Florida Panthers; that's a team that's not promoting their young guys, they are bringing in veteran depth.
Tampa Bay, Colorado, those are teams that have also been through that grind that did the same thing.
I don't know if Danford's timeline lines up when Toronto is going to be at its peak competitiveness level.
What «No Prospect Is Safe» Could Mean for Toronto's Roster Strategy
Well first and foremost, for someone like Cowan it means that this training camp and preseason is going to be a huge turning point in his career. If he can manage to find a spot in the lineup come opening night, and also impresses; he might not be untouchable but could be close to it.
Danford on the other hand will get a chance to shine but is still a few years away, so unless he decides to come out of his shell and blow away everyone in the OHL this season; he could be on the chopping block.
Looking at the team's defense now they have the majority of their back end locked up for the next several years and barring some crazy turnaround in philosophy and management, they are sticking around.
That means Danford is going to potentially pushed out longer than anticipated and if they aren't going to have him at the forefront in a few years, then maybe the chance to win now is worth the cost.
You also have guys like Noah Chadwick, Cade Webber, John Prokop, William Villeneuve and Victor Johansson as potential future Maple Leafs so it's not like Danford isn't expendable if he can bring in a top or middle six forward.
So now is the time to strike while the iron is hot, and while Danford has a lot of potential, so does the chance to win a Cup if they decide to part ways with him.
| POLL | ||
SEPTEMBRE 8|1141 ANSWERS No Prospect Is Safe? The Maple Leafs Trade Conversation Heating Up Which prospect would you rather Toronto trade? | ||
| Ben Danford | 918 | 80.5 % |
| Easton Cowan | 223 | 19.5 % |
| List of polls | ||