Three Maple Leafs Players Expected to Head Overseas After Season Ends, per Source

It seems the Maple Leafs have done well for themselves in recent weeks with a bevy of free agent signings in order shore up their prospect pool and replace some of the pieces they traded away at the trade deadline, and it's a huge positive for their future aspirations especially with so many questions about what's next.

Though, perhaps GM Brad Treliving had sone other plans in mind when he signed his group of free agents.

According to Eisblog, an insider source with connections to the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL) in Germany has reported that upon the season ending, it's reported that Joseph Blandisi, Zach Solow, and Nicolas Mattinen.

The news was relayed to North American audiences c/o Leafs Nation News.

While the Marlies and those players still have a fair bit of hockey left, with five games left and still fighting for a playoff spot, it looks like the trio are trying to prepare for their future and might see the writing on the wall after all of the signings and what direction the team is headed.

Blandisi, drafted 162nd overall by Colorado in 2012, has mainly been an AHL lifer with sporadic appearances in the NHL. Spending the last four seasons with the Marlies, he has 160 points (66G, 94A) in 228 games.

This year, he's posted 33 points in 64 games, along with 80 PIM and a plus-4; he signed with the Marlies in 2021.

Solow has spent the past three seasons with the Marlies, and while he hasn't necessarily lit up the lamp, he's offered the team a lot of grit, toughness and physicality, especially only at 5'9.

In 136 games with the team, he's registered 46 points (18G, 26A) with 196 PIM and a plus-1.

This season was a bit of a downturn statistically for the young forward, posing 16 points in 47 games (5G, 11A); Solow signed with the Marlies in 2022 as an undrafted free agent.

The final player potentially headed overseas is Nicolas Mattinen, someone who has been in the Maple Leafs system since he was drafted by them 179th in 2016, but bounced around several AHL, European, as well as some college hockey.

It is his first season with the Marlies and he's only been used in 21 games so far, with four points. Previous to this season Mattinen spent time in the DEL with Straubing, but also played in Austria, skated for Laval in the AHL, and spent two years at the University of Ottawa playing as well.

He certainly fits the bill in terms of size and may have been one to stick around, but at 27 and no real NHL spot for him in the future, heading back to Europe may be his best bet.

While nothing is set in stone yet, and the Marlies still have an AHL season to play out with a lot of playoff implications, it seems that once that season ends, regardless of when; Toronto is going to be saying goodbye to at least one, if not three of their current players.