The Toronto Maple Leafs have been ravaged by the injury bug this season, with veterans Auston Matthews, Chris Tanev, Scott Laughton and Anthony Stolarz all sidelined with health issues of one sort or another.

But Toronto’s problems run deeper than that. This Maple Leafs team just doesn’t have the right chemistry. A Sportsnet report Saturday speculated that the Leafs aren’t interested in trading away draft picks or prospects like young winger Easton Cowan, but rather, to make “hockey trades, roster for roster”.

Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman elaborated on that, stating that Toronto management isn’t willing to trade players from their core, and that means Matthews, goalies Stolarz and Joseph Woll, William Nylander, John Tavares, Matthew Knies and Tanev aren’t going anywhere. You can probably say the same for D-men Jake McCabe and Oliver Ekman-Larsson, and forwards Nicolas Roy, Laughton and Steven Lorentz. They all possess the combination of skill and snot that coach Craig Berube is looking for.

However, that leaves a good number of players who could be dealt sometime soon. For instance, we can see Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving trading veteran blueliner Morgan Rielly, even if Rielly controls his exit via a full no-movement clause. Rielly has had a solid start offensively, with 12 assists and 15 points in 18 games. Would Toronto move Rielly to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Erik Karlsson? Or what about a Rielly to the New Jersey Devils swap in exchange for Dougie Hamilton? Those deals could be sold to Rielly as going to a playoff contender.

But there are other veteran Leafs who aren’t part of the core and who could be traded in the coming weeks. Do we believe forward Max Domi could be moved? Yes, we do, even if Domi has a modified no-trade clause allowing him to veto a deal to 13 teams of his choosing. That still leaves 18 teams Domi can be traded to without his consent.

Meanwhile, do we think Leafs defenseman Brandon Carlo could also be dealt? Yes, we do, even if he, too, has a modified no-trade clause that lets him reject a trade to eight teams. That leaves 23 teams he can be shipped out to. Domi and Carlo are experienced hands, but they’ve both been struggling to put up points or be solid defenders.

After that, there’s a glut of forwards the Leafs could trade, including veterans Calle Jarnkrok, Nick Robertson, Bobby McMann and Dakota Joshua. Robertson has been on a hot streak, but it may be time to sell high on him as an asset. And Jarnkrok, McMann and Joshua are bottom-six forwards with little trade value. But they could be dealt to change up the chemistry on this team.

In any case, the Leafs’ underachieving almost certainly means the status quo is not an option for Treliving. Toronto needs a serious shakeup, and all signs point to at least one move of consequence coming soon.    

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