Wallmark’s defensive metrics are pretty good so I feel he could be a good fit for 3C. Slight downgrade from Kerfoot but cheaper. Agree on Mikheyev but if you want him on the 2nd line gotta pay him.

I could’ve traded for Mayfield or Lyabuskin but statiscally, Oleksiak was better than both plus had an opportunity in the top 4 this season alongside Heiskanem.

We have enough LHD. We need RHD. If Oleksiak was a RHD I wouldn't mind this deal.

Handedness does matter. It's not the be all and end all but it does have a significant impact.

You have Holl, Dermott & Lehtonen who can all play the right side. That’s pretty good. You’ve got Muzzin-Holl as your shutdown pair. You could play around & put Oleksiak with Dermott, that’s another defensively responsible pairing, then go Rielly-Lehtonen for all out offence.

https://jfresh.substack.com/p/joshua-ho-sang-belongs-in-the-nhl

I read this article explaining how Ho-Sang has performed at the level of an NHL caliber forward when he’s played. I feel Keefe could be one of those coaches who is open minded enough to give him a shot.

https://jfresh.substack.com/p/joshua-ho-sang-belongs-in-the-nhl

The interesting thing with Oleksiak is that his underlying numbers have actually been really good. For example, he ranks in the 99th percentile in expected goals against this season. So that’s why I targeted him here.

Whats the story behind Ho-Sang, what's going on that no one is taking a chance on him?

I would say Sandin probs goes down for conditioning cause yes he has all the skills and tools of an NHL player, but he needs to put on some size as in front of the net he struggled. If Keefe decided to let robertson play in johnssons place that will be an indicator as to whether he is NHL ready. Should he struggle he can go to Liga, if he does very well then Dubas can make moves to accommodate him in the roster.

Honestly I feel the best setup for the leafs could be

Rielly-(Mystery Partner acquired via trade) <- partner should be more of a defensive defense man
Muzzin-Holl
Lehtonen-Dermott

Value is fine, but Dallas doesn't need anymore LD. Instead of Rosen, make it Jesper Lindgren instead and it benefits both teams. Dallas' organizational RD depth is atrocious.

It's a solid squad with fairly realistic trades. Im not confident that we could get Dal Colle (and Ho-Sang) for Bracco, might need to throw something else in, but it wouldn't cost enough that it would subtract from the NHL roster either way.

I admit having none of Robertson, Sandin, or even Liljegren ready would be unfortunate, but it's a fine roster that should at least make the playoffs. I'm not sure about Wallmark as 3C though; I like Wallmark and his play style for the bottom 6, but we tried Kerfoot there and he did fine, but not great, and especially if robertson isn't ready, a bit of a playmaking touch there between Engvall/Kapanen could be useful.

Overall, it's a fine roster with fairly realistic trades. Main hole is not a proper 3C for PK and playmaking, but that's a challenge, as well as 1RD, but that's also a long-term ask. Good enough roster, realistic moves to get it.

I think he has the reputation of being immature, selfish, lazy & emotionally unstable so a lot of teams aren’t willing to take an opportunity on him as he could cause turmoil within the organization. However according to Isles fans, he plays hard every game & gets good results. Toronto is big on analytical players so I feel they could take a chance.

Thanks for the feedback. Yeah Wallmark is a bit of a question mark, I read his scouting report & it says he’s a good playmaker with high hockey sense. Plus he’s pretty good defensively. Perhaps he needs a little bit experience being a 3C but he definitely seems to have the skillset to play there.

Forget the Kerfoot, Dallas and Panther trades, the rest is pretty normal ACGM stuff

Indeed this team is made up completely of small, skilled finesse players. They want to play a puck possession system, so they should all fit. I am more concerned about the lack of willingness to work than the size & physicality. They are going to play teams (like CBJ) that is going to grind & outwork them on the forecheck & puck retrieval which I don’t think Toronto’s forwards are willing to match. They mostly have guys who are lazy & primarily perimeter players, Marner is the most obvious example.

Isles say no.. Bracco is further away than either of those 2 guys and there's some rumblings that he was behind what happened in Kitchener a couple years ago. So I think he's going to be allowed to walk as a UFA by the Leafs.

I don't see any reason why Sandin won't be ready, I think pairing him up with Dermott (if he isn't traded) would work out quite well. Robertson will get a trial run in the playoffs but I think he's ready. But to go along with your scenario for a minute...

I don't think Johnsson gets a 2nd. He missed half the year and with the cap staying flat his value gets diminished anymore. Maybe a 3rd and a 5th. Kerfoot is more likely to get a 2nd round pick back but I think the Leafs will end up keeping him (which I don't like) because Dubas clearly likes him and he was misued on the wing for lots of this season. But one of Kerfoot or Johnsson has to go. Oleksiak trade is fine but again I don't think it'll be necessary.