Crosby is carrying the Penguins to a playoff spot, Vegas' Stone may miss the first round and Draisaitl gives up his nickname to McDavid

Brad Treliving has only been on the job for nine months. But the Toronto Maple Leafs GM has apparently already lost the benefit of the doubt.

Which is strange, because Treliving has basically done everything fans have asked of him.

He re-signed Auston Matthews and William Nylander to extensions. He made the team physically tougher to play against. He's added grit and depth to both the centre and goaltending positions. And while not all of his decisions have been successful — whatever happened to John Klingberg? — at least Toronto is not in the same mess as former GM Kyle Dubas' Pittsburgh Penguins.

In fact, the last time we checked, the Leafs were a top-3 team in arguably the most top-heavy division in the NHL. That's a lot better than where the Penguins find themselves. Toronto is a legitimate Stanley Cup contender. And arguably a more balanced unit than the 2022-23 version under Dubas.

So why does it feel like Treliving is already being second-guessed as he heads into his first — and what might be his most important — trade deadline?

Case in point: the acquisition of Ilya Lyubushkin.

As you may remember, the Russian Bear became a sort of fan favourite in Toronto when Dubas acquired him from Arizona two years ago. But when Treliving traded for him on Thursday night, literally moments after veteran defenceman Mark Giordano left the game with a suspected concussion after sliding head-first into the end boards, the decision was met with mostly pitchforks and torches from the pro-Dubas crowd.

Here's the thing: Lyubushkin is not going to partner with Morgan Rielly on the top defense pairing. He's not Noah Hanifin. Heck, he's not even Chris Tanev, who many expected Treliving to acquire from their time together in Calgary. 

Then again, the Leafs didn't acquire Lyubushkin to be any of those things. Nor are they paying him to be.

Toronto gave up a third-rounder in 2025 to the Ducks and a 2024 sixth-rounder to the Carolina Hurricanes ( who helped facilitate the three-team trade) as a way for Anaheim to eat 50% of Lyubushkin’s $2,750,000 contract, while Carolina retains half of the remainder. At his worst, Lyubushkin is a No. 6 or 7 defenseman. At his best, he's a 6-foot-2, physical presence who can kill penalties and play on the right side.

The best part, he costs less than the league minimum. And because the Leafs saved a ton on cap space, Treliving may still go out and get a better defenseman. Or maybe a top-9 forward.

Whatever he does — or doesn't do — you can bet that it will be second-guessed. That is, until the Leafs win a Cup. And fans can finally forget all about losing Dubas and move on with their lives.

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