The Toronto Maple Leafs are still looking to replace the void of Mitch Marner’s departure this offseason.
Marner led Toronto in points and is one of the best players in the NHL, so replacing him isn’t easy. This offseason, the Maple Leafs have added more depth to the bottom-six, but haven’t truly added a top-line winger to replace Marner.
Yet, as the offseason continues, NHL insider Sonny Sachdeva of Sportsnet urges the Maple Leafs to acquire Bryan Rust from the Pittsburgh Penguins.
“Since moving on from Mitch Marner, the Maple Leafs have brought in a number of depth pieces to fill out the club’s forward corps, but they have yet to replace the offensive production and creativity lost with No. 16’s departure,” Sachdeva wrote. “Toronto was never going to bring in a player of Marner’s calibre, of course — the central point of turning the page on the Core Four era is spreading out the dollars earmarked for Marner to other corners of the lineup…
“It seems Treliving and Co. may still be hunting for a more impactful addition. Either Rust or Rakell could slot in as a top-six piece with a bit more scoring pedigree, pushing one of the other recent additions into a needed depth role,” Sachdeva added. “Financially, the Maple Leafs have cap space to work with should they look to bring in another scorer, and names who could be moved to help facilitate a deal, such as veteran David Kampf.”
Rust has three years left on his six-year, $30.75 million deal with the Penguins. So, acquiring him wouldn’t be cheap for the Maple Leafs. But, he’d add some much-needed offense to the Maple Leafs’ lineup and help replace Marner.
Where Would Rust Fit Into Maple Leafs Lineup?
If Toronto does go out and trade for Rust, he’d immediately become a top-six winger and get power-play time.
Rust can play left or right wing, which gives Craig Berube some versatility, as he can be the second-line left winger, which is a need. But, more likely, Rust would be the Maple Leafs’ first-line right winger, the role Marner had.
Rust would play alongside Auston Matthews and Matthew Knies and give the Maple Leafs another offensive weapon. He recorded 31 goals and 34 assists for 65 points in 71 games.
Not only does Rust add some much-needed offense, but he also has plenty of playoff experience. He won the Stanley Cup with the Penguins in 2016 and 2017. He’s also a playoff performer, as the last time Pittsburgh made the playoffs, he had 8 points in 7 games.
Maple Leafs Looking to Replace Marner
After losing Marner to the Vegas Golden Knights this offseason, Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving said the goal was to add a top-six forward to replace him.
“When a player of Mitch’s magnitude moves away, that’s never a fun day… In a situation where a player was walking away this morning for nothing, we were able to recoup a player that fits a need for us… Mitch was a top-six forward, and we haven’t replaced that hole,” Treliving said on July 1. “That’s really where our focus is.”
However, so far, that hasn’t been the case as Toronto instead has added Nic Roy and Dakota Joshua, who are bottom-six forwards, while Mattias Maccelli could be a top-six winger.
The Maple Leafs do have some assets to make some trades to address the top-six.
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