The Toronto Maple Leafs were eliminated from the playoffs mathematically after a 4-1 loss to the San Jose Sharks on Thursday, something that should spur on the club giving some of their young players a look with just six games remaining in the regular season, but that is something that head coach Craig Berube seems to have not been open to since the trade deadline last month.
The club has seen positive results out of giving youngster Easton Cowan more of a primary role, playing with John Tavares and William Nylander, but instead of giving young center Jacob Quillan more of a look down the stretch, Berube has been giving Bo Groulx opportunities higher in the lineup.
Quillan once again played just over 10 minutes against the Sharks, while Groulx was -2 in just over 15 minutes. The other puzzling lineup decision is the continuing use of Calle Jarnkrok, instead of giving some young, deserving forward from the AHL Marlies an NHL look. Berube clearly has carte blanche when it comes to the roster, and is acting like a coach who knows he has only a few games to go before he is axed.
The rumors of potential candidates and the direction that the Leafs will go continue to emerge. Some chatter regarding the future of Auston Matthews and Morgan Rielly is fairly hilarious, since Matthews has said in the past the same thing that William Nylander has said, that if the club is not tearing it down, he wants to stay in Toronto. Until the new hierarchy speaks with Matthews representatives in the offseason, there is no news here.
The same with Rielly. Sportsnet’s Nick Kypreos ponders whether the remaining six games of this season will be Rielly’s last in blue and white,, but in the same breath says that a buyout is unlikely (with four years left on his deal) and that he has a no-movement clause for the next two seasons.
Kypreos says that some NHL teams still see a useful player in Rielly, but that he expects the Leafs to do its best to convince him to waive his NMC. The problem is that is likely what happened last summer, and Rielly told them he wanted to stay in Toronto. Unless the Leafs are prepared to sit a serviceable $7.5 million blueliner to force him out of town, and sully the reputation of the club by forcing their longest-serving player out of town, this is likely to play out the same way it did last summer.
Buyout may be the only option if the Leafs truly believe that Rielly is no longer useful, but if the Kypreos scenario plays out, it could end up being the 2026 version of Larry Murphy.
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