Nick Robertson will be competing for a roster spot with the Toronto Maple Leafs, but his chances don’t seem too good.
Robertson hasn’t been able to be a full-time player on the Maple Leafs roster, as he has been a healthy scratch in the playoffs. Heading into training camp, he doesn’t have a clear path to a roster spot, and Maple Leafs coach Craig Berube gave him some bad news.
When asked if Robertson would be given a full-time role this season, Berube wouldn’t commit to that.
“There’s a lot of competition at camp. I’ll leave it at that. There’s a lot of competition at camp, which is great. I think it makes for a competitive camp and that’s what we want, because that’s gonna get us more prepared for the regular season. I don’t have the answer to that right now. There’s jobs available and again, it’s a competition. You gotta come in and play your ass off and earn a spot,” Berube said to The Athletic.
Robertson won’t be handed a roster spot or playing time by Berube. Instead, he will need to have a good training camp in order to make the team and have an impact.
Robertson signed a one-year, $1.825 million deal with the Maple Leafs.
Maple Leafs Coach Believes Team is Deeper
Part of the reason why Robertson isn’t guaranteed playing time is due to the fact that the Maple Leafs are a deeper team.
Toronto added the likes of Mattias Maccelli, Nic Roy, Dakota Joshua, and Michael Pezzetta to add more depth to the bottom-six. Those players will make it harder for Robertson to earn playing time, as Berube believes this is a deeper team.
“Listen, he touched all areas of the game for us — penalty kill, power play, five on five. He’s a guy that’s hard to replace. You’re not replacing him,” Berube said. “But we brought in three new players — Roy, Joshua and Maccelli, all sorta different types of players — but I feel like we’re probably a deeper team, bringing in the three guys. We talk about replacing Mitch; that’s not what we’re trying to do. We’re just trying to improve our team in other ways by adding these players.”
Currently, DailyFaceoff projects Robertson to be a healthy scratch. But, he could also be a trade candidate if he doesn’t make Toronto out of camp.
Robertson recorded 15 goals and 7 assists for 22 points in 69 games.
Insider Believes Toronto Will Shop Robertson
Maple Leafs insider and analyst Jonas Siegel of The Athletic was the one who talked to Berube, and he expects Toronto to shop Robertson.
Siegel doesn’t believe Robertson has a path to playing time and the Maple Leafs will look to trade him.
“I wondered if the Leafs would opt not to offer Robertson a qualifying offer after last season. And this only reinforces that line of thinking,” Siegel wrote. “Why bring back a player who doesn’t fit the coach, was mostly a scratch in the playoffs and probably isn’t thrilled to be returning to a team that doesn’t seem especially fond of him, again?
“The Leafs ended up paying him $1.8 million, on a one-year deal, to return,” Siegel added. “Berube’s response made me wonder, for the millionth time, if Robertson isn’t long for Toronto. Is there a team that wants to take a flier on him and is willing to pay him that rate?”
Robertson was selected 53rd overall in 2019 by Toronto. He’s skated in 156 games, recording 32 goals and 24 assists for 56 points.
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