The narrative regarding the Toronto Maple Leafs prior to the Olympic break and leading up to the March 6th trade deadline will be how much will they sell, and what can they get in return. The Leafs won their second straight against the dregs of the Western Conference, earning a shootout victory against Vancouver on Saturday and a 4-2 win over the Calgary Flames, and take on the Edmonton Oilers in the second of back-to-back contests on Tuesday, and their third game in four nights.
The consecutive wins have done little to whittle down the deficit between Toronto and the last Eastern Conference wildcard spot. The Leafs currently stand seven points in back of Boston, but when you are chasing five teams, it is a near-impossible task to gain that much ground so deep in the season, which is reflected by Moneypuck.com having Toronto’s odds of making the postseason at 7.2%.
Toronto could make a deal before the Olympic roster freeze at 3 pm Wednesday, but the more likely scenario will be that GM Brad Treliving shops around players over the nearly three-week break, which seemed to be hinted at by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman on Saturday. How extensive the moves Treliving makes will be based on several factors. The most important one should be what the Leafs get in return in a potential deal.
Pending UFA winger Bobby McMann (who scored the empty-netter on Monday) should be a near certainty to be moved, since the return could be significant (Chris Johnston and James Mirtle’s piece in the Athletic on the weekend said a pair of second round picks to a first round pick is possible), based on McMann’s low salary and a thin free agent/deadline pool. The free agent pool could result in having to overpay and give the 29-year-old more term, something that Toronto cannot afford to do.
Factors that could come into consideration are players wanting to stay with the Leafs. Pending UFA Scott Laughton has said publicly that he wishes to remain in Toronto, and while it is possible that Treliving could get back some or most of what he dealt to Philadelphia to acquire the 31-year-old last March, getting a veteran center re-signed on a team-friendly salary would also be beneficial. The Leafs would need to find out what an extension would look like in term and salary, otherwise he is a valuable piece that must be moved.
On defense, Brandon Carlo said to David Alter of the Hockey News that he also would like to stay, and at 29 years old, he would be the right age to still be effective after a one-to-two-year retool, but that is not the case with Oliver Ekman-Larsson. OEL leads the club’s defensive group with 33 points (8 goals, 25 assists) in 56 games, and is on pace to have his best season since 2015-16. The 34-year-old has two more seasons left at $3.5 million AAV, has won a Stanley Cup, can play both sides, and plays with much more of a physical edge than he did in his days with Arizona.
The factors here are whether Ekman-Larsson can still be good even if the Toronto turnaround is quick, and that is not likely entering his mid-30’s. With a 16-team modified no-trade, Treliving can generate a significant market and get an excellent return, and that is something that the Leafs cannot fail to take advantage of.
Anthony Stolarz will get the start against the Oilers.
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS (26-21-9 – 61 POINTS)
at
EDMONTON OILERS (28-20-8 – 64 POINTS)
FEBRUARY 3, 2026 ▪ 8:30 PM EST ▪ ROGERS PLACE (EDMONTON, AB)
TV: SPORTSNET ▪ RADIO: TSN 1050
MAPLE LEAFS HISTORY vs. EDMONTON OILERS
| All-Time Record: | 64-47-8-3 (122 Games) |
| All-Time Road Record: | 29-27-6-2 (64 Games) |
| 2024-25: | 2-0-0 |
| Last Five: | 3-2-0 |
| Last 10: | 6-3-1 |
| First Matchup Between Clubs: | November 11, 1979 (Toronto 6 at Edmonton 3) |
| All-Time Record: | 64-47-8-3 (122 Games) |
| All-Time Home Record: | 35-20-2-1 (58 Games) |
| All-Time Road Record: | 29-27-6-2 (64 Games) |
| Last Road Win vs. Opponent: | February 1, 2025 (Toronto 4 at Edmonton 3) |
MAPLE LEAFS / OILERS – 2025-26 TEAM STATS
| TORONTO | EDMONTON | |
| Goals For Per Game: | 3.25 (13th) | 3.45 (3rd) |
| Goals Against Per Game: | 3.41 (27th) | 3.25 (22nd-T) |
| Power Play %: | 17.6 (24th-T) | 31.2 (1st) |
| Penalty Kill %: | 83.6 (5th) | 78.7 (19th-T) |
| Shots For Per Game: | 27.3 (21st) | 29.8 (5th) |
| Shots Against Per Game: | 31.6 (32nd) | 27.1 (10th) |
| Faceoff %: | 56.3 (1st) | 52.4 (4th) |
| (NHL rank in parenthesis) | ||
