Brad Treliving’s philosophy that he has frequently stood by is that the offseason is the time for overhauling the roster not the regular season. That maybe a philosophy inherited from his time spent under Brian Burke in Calgary, and you could argue that there should be some evidence of this philosophy being successful before committing so firmly to it.
In the past Treliving’s history at the trade deadline has been about tempering expectations on who Brad Treliving would bring in to help the Leafs, this time as the Leafs are progressing towards seller status, the Leafs’ GM’s past shows that a fire sale isn’t likely occurring either.
Years the Flames missed the playoffs under Brad Treliving:
| Season | Flames traded | Flames Acquired |
| 2015-16 | Markus Granlund | Hunter Shinkaruk |
| Jiri Hudler | 2nd and 4th round picks | |
| Kris Russell | Jyrki Jokipakka Brett Pollock Conditional 2nd or 3rd round pick (ended up 2nd) |
|
| 2017-18 | Eddie Lack | Dalton Prout |
| 7th rd pick | Nick Shore | |
| 2020-21 | David Rittich | 3rd rd pick |
| Sam Bennett 6th Rd pick |
2nd Rd Pick Emil Heineman |
|
| 2022-23 | Radim Zohorna | Dryden Hunt |
| Brett Ritchie Connor Mackey |
Troy Stecher Nick Ritchie |
|
| Future Considerations | Kristians Rubins |
The 2015-16 trades of Kris Russell and Jiri Hudler in what ended up being the worst season the Flames had under Brad Treliving were the closest thing the Flames had to a sell off. The Flames would walk away with three second round picks and a couple of prospects and ideally this would be the results that Leafs fans should be hoping will be repeated. The reasonable sell off of veteran assets brought in some useable futures and freed up key spots in the lineup that were addressed in the offseason and along with the convenient ability to draft Matthew Tkachuk (not really an option for the Leafs), the team turned itself around from a 77 point team to a 94 point team by 2016-17.
The next biggest push came during the strange COVID North Division season and the Flames cashed out on Sam Bennett in addition to getting a decent return for David Rittich from the Maple Leafs. Second and third round picks along with a player that was a fairly highly regarded prospect as the return is decent and given the Leafs current situation is the low bar for what should be expected from the Leafs as sellers.
The other two playoff missing seasons are a bit more concerning. The 2017-18 season where only Eddie Lack was moved and for a minimal return was partially because the Flames were tied for the final wild card spot on deadline day. No matter what happens between now and the trade deadline, the Leafs are very unlikely to be that close to a playoff spot.
The 2022-23 season trade deadline for the Flames was littered with Leafs moves. Acquiring Dryden Hunt from the Leafs, picking up former Marlie Kristians Rubins for Future Considerations, and bringing in current Leaf Troy Stecher and former Leaf Nick Ritchie. The bizarre thing about this is that none of these moves were about bringing in assets for helpful future assets for the Flames or clearing out any veterans despite being five points behind the final wild card team on deadline day. Interestingly enough the Flames had a .540 points percentage then which mirrors the .538 point percentage the Leafs presently have (although the Leafs eight points back right now.)
2023 Treliving would eventually trade Tyler Toffoli at the draft and perhaps that could be the better play for the Leafs with under contract players like Stolarz, Domi, Ekman-Larsson, and Carlo, but Laughton and McMann need to get the Bennett or Hudler treatment.
There are opportunities for the Leafs to go big as sellers and unless the Western road trip is dramatically different their disastrous homestand, that seems like the situation calls for but if the Leafs are looking at an overhaul, the question also needs to be asked if the person responsible for the failing roster is the right guy to fix it. Pushing Brad Treliving outside his comfort zone doesn’t seem like the right course of action either.
Something needs to go right for the Maple Leafs and with the 2015 trade deadline sell off as Toronto’s gold standard, it will be interesting to see if the trade deadline can provide some positives to a very disappointing season.
PRESENTED BY OFF THE ROSTER
Introducing Off The Roster—Toronto Sports, Unfiltered! Toronto sports fans, your new favourite conversation has arrived. Hosted by Cabbie Richards, Lindsay Dunn, and Dan Riccio, Off The Roster dives into the city’s legendary plays, brutal trades, OG jerseys, celebrity tweets, and everything in between. Raw, fun, and totally unfiltered, this is Toronto sports like you’ve never heard it before. Tune in live every weekday morning on the Nation Network YouTube channel, or catch episodes wherever you stream podcasts. Proudly brought to you by our founding partner, PROLINE. Off The Roster—the new sound in the 6ix.