Wow! Two of the most underrated players here in a trade. Preparing my popcorn for the comments 🍿

I actually like this.

Getting rid of a $3M player for another $3M player plus loosing a 1st and a 2nd makes no sense to me. Leafs only pick up $1M forwards from now on to go with the top 4 + Hyman's raise. They are going to need to keep those draft picks for more ECL players.

So basically a first, a second, and some cap for strome. Doesn’t seem too crazy i guess if Chicago doesn’t have him in their long term plans.

I think the contract is a bit weird. Takes him right to UFA without buying out any UFA years, which isn’t really a think in the NHL. And the number seems a bit small.

One of the players is good and the other is meh.

Strome is worlds better then Kerfoot, come on man. Strome since becoming a Blackhawk is a .76ppg player, 3 years younger with plenty of upside still at that young age, and a RFA so acquiring the rights to Strome's career if the acquiring team or Hawks bridge him which is more then likely. Kerfoot is 3 years older, not much upside, and a .5ppg player. Although defensively more responsible then strome, Strome is way more valuable.

That said this is a bad trade for the Leafs. Strome is a 2C with upside so burying him as a 3C for 5 years until JT is done, is a mistake and waste of Strome's talent.

Chicago would pass I'd have to imagine despite the trade on paper being pretty close to correct value. A late 1st round pick usually doesn't net a player that becomes a fulltime NHL player let alone potential upside to be as good as Strome so the gamble doesn't make sense for Chicago. If Chicago trades for Strome, I'd imagine the expected return would be a 1st from a team likely to be a lottery team or moreso a prospect that has big potential.

Will it be a late first though?

Well the Leafs are definitely a playoff team in my opinion with the only question do they make it out of the first round. Nonetheless, not a lottery pick.

In a shortened condescend season they are one injury on D away from being on the bubble. There were large portions of the season where they were a bubble team before the season was suspended.

But that is the case with so many teams that aren't only 3 or 4 at the dominant top of the league; Colorado, Vegas, and a few more that are locks for a deep run.

And?

And, the Hawks aren't going to trade Strome for a team's first round pick that is very likely, barring injury, going to be a playoff team; not sure what's hard to understand about that? For further explanation, Kerfoot would be nothing but a stopgap role player short term so his value isn't much to Chicago as he will not fit their plans..Chicago has plenty of role players.

Would you trade Robertson to a team like Boston for their first?

People are missing the point. I agree Strome is better, but we cannot afford any more $3M players, if we trade Kerfoot it will be to free up cap space to sign Hyman next year.

What you mean to be saying is you want to dump Kerfoot's cap hit entirely and not take cap back because in this scenario, you are saving $500K while picking up a much better center. On paper in a vacuum, the Leafs would be crazy not to take this trade, Strome is a better asset then Kerfoot and at least 1/2 the Leafs roster. Though the Leafs do need to dump cap so understand the perspective. Also, this is just a bad fit for the Leafs even if they had cap to play with given that JT is locked in for 5 years and nobody is going to want his contract the older he gets so he would be pretty hard to move.

For the record, no way should Chicago entertain this as there would be better offers from other teams.

Nope, what I am saying is there is no point in making this trade at all. It is not worth giving up the picks and prospects to upgrade 3C, when chances are we are going to dump Kerfoot in the off season anyway.

I never said the trade should happen. Nor am i a leafs fan.

Boston and toronto are in very different situations.

But the point is the same AND has nothing to do with a being a leafs fan, Chicago fan or boston fan.

Teams aren't giving up high-end young prospects/players for a late 1st. Draft picks are way too highly rated by fans and especially people on here. A mid to late 1st at best, has a 30% chance of being a NHL career player and much much less of a chance to be a .76 ppg center.

Kapanen comes to mind

They got more then a 1st for Kap which was a lottery pick (again we aren't talking about lottery picks), and Strome is hands down more valuable then Kap. Not to mention Kap was traded for cap purposes for a Leafs team that was over the cap whereas the Hawks are fine against the cap.

Okay well you just said teams aren’t giving up high end players for a late first. I think you’re kind of splitting hairs with your definition of late first, as toronto could easily be chucking up the 15th overall next year.

I think you’re being a bit cavalier with your definition of high end as well.

Obviously Kap netted back the 15th OA plus. The 15th OA by definition and mathematically is a mid first with 31 teams in the league; not a late first. There is no splitting hairs it is a literal definition and is a lottery pick by rule in a normal year.

Strome is a high-end young 23 year old player with plenty of upside; former #4 OA pick and a .76ppg 2C. He is worth more then Kap, although Boston overpaid for Kap as many know and Chicago likely would have entertained a similar offer in value for Strome, but not a chance the Hawks trade him for a playoff bound team that more then likely results in a late first.

Strome was the 3rd overall wasn’t he? And Pittsburgh traded for kap. Not boston. I guess i don’t really get what you’re trying to argue. Teams trade young players for first round picks. It happens. It’s a cap world.

This all started from me commenting that Toronto’s pick might be higher than many think. I stand by that.

3rd, not 4 correct and yes Pitsburgh not Boston my bad.

I'm simply saying Strome is worth at least a lottery pick or higher end prospect aligning to Chicago's rebuild efforts. It is highly unlikely Toronto's 1st is a lottery pick; barring injury which would be dumb gamble for a team to count on and Kerfoot offers little value to Chicago's plans. As such Chicago passes on this offer.

Maybe. Strome has really only had one good season, and if you really look at it, it was more just a good 60 game stretch with the hawks.