Toronto Maple Leafs veterans Bobby McMann, Scott Laughton and Oliver Ekman-Larsson have surfaced in trade rumors and speculation ahead of Friday's deadline.
The Toronto Maple Leafs made Bobby McMann, Scott Laughton and Oliver Ekman-Larsson healthy scratches two days before the NHL trade deadline.
The team faces the New Jersey Devils at the Prudential Center on Wednesday amid trade rumors and speculation regarding their depth players. The three players won't dress for the game for roster management purposes, suggesting trades are imminent for each of them and that the team doesn't want to risk injury before that happens.
McMann and Laughton are on expiring contracts. McMann has a $1.35-million cap hit, while the Leafs carry $1.5 million of Laughton's $3-million cap hit. Ekman-Larsson still has two years left on his contract, worth $3.5 million annually.
The Maple Leafs sit nine points out of a playoff spot and appear to be getting ready to sell and turn their focus to next season, rather than being trade-deadline buyers as they were in recent years.
Toronto announced earlier in the day that defenseman Chris Tanev won't return this season. He underwent core muscle surgery in New York City on Wednesday and should be ready for September's training camp.
And Laughton, who joined the Leafs at last year's trade deadline, could be on the move again.
Toronto traded a conditional first-round pick and prospect Nikita Grebenkin for Laughton, a fourth-round pick and a sixth-round pick on March 7, 2025.
The 31-year-old from Oakville, Ont., recorded four points in 20 games for the Maple Leafs after the trade and added two assists in 13 playoff games. This season, he's had eight goals and 12 points in 43 games. His production has dropped from each of the last four seasons, when Laughton put up at least 30 points.
Laughton told reporters on Monday that Toronto is where he wants to be, but he doesn't get in the conversations too much, and he'll see where it goes.
"It's not up to us. It's out of our control, and everyone's in their own situation, has to deal with their own things," Laughton told reporters before Monday's game against the Flyers. "But you have to come on the ice and be a unit together. It's hard sometimes, but at the end of the day, you're in the NHL and one of the best franchises. It's a very humbling opportunity to play here, and it's a special place."
Ekman-Larsson, meanwhile, signed with the Leafs in 2024 after winning the Stanley Cup with the Florida Panthers. The 34-year-old from Karlskrona, Sweden, has eight goals and 27 assists for 35 points in 61 games this season while averaging 20:47 of ice time.
With term left on Ekman-Larsson's contract, he's brought cost-certainty, secondary production and solid puck-moving abilities to the Leafs. He could do so with another team if Toronto trades him.
The Edmonton Oilers reportedly had interest in Ekman-Larsson, according to Friedman, but Edmonton acquired right-shot defenseman Connor Murphy from the Chicago Blackhawks instead on Monday.
And McMann, 29, has 19 goals and 32 points in 60 games this season. He's expected to get a hefty raise on his salary on his next contract. That said, McMann told The Hockey News' Toronto Maple Leafs site he'd be open to returning to the Leafs if they were to trade him this week.
The NHL trade deadline is 3 p.m. ET on Friday.
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