Insider Trading: Schenn, Laughton remain best fits for Leafs

TSN’s Hockey Insiders with the latest on Toronto’s search for help at centre, contract talks with John Tavares, Yanni Gourde possibly returning before the trade deadline, why Edmonton won’t likely seek goaltending help, if the Stars can make the pieces fit with Seth Jones and the IIHF, NHL and NHLPA set to meet soon.

James Duthie: The Toronto Maple Leafs enter play Wednesday first in their division, no real juggernauts in the East outside of the way Washington looks so far. So, a real green light opportunity, are they prepared to go all-in to go out and get somebody?

Darren Dreger: Well they’re prepared to do something, there’s no doubt about that. And you’re right, they do see now an opportunity to win and on top of that the Maple Leafs do have the assets. The prospect pool is there and other teams, like the St. Louis Blues, are paying attention. We look at Brayden Schenn as being a great fit in Toronto because of the player, and because of the winning pedigree. So you look at the prospect pool in Toronto and you see Fraser Minten or Easton Cowan. You’ve got Nikita Grebenkin, you’ve got Ben Danford coming. I mean, there are other assets that Brad Treliving can use. And he’s most definitely interesting, the captain of the Blues. You also have Scott Laughton of the Philadelphia Flyers. The ask is a little bit less, it’s a first-round draft pick or an equal value prospect unless Philadelphia has to take a player or a contract back, and then it’s a first-plus. So, two great options for the Leafs.

Chris Johnston: Well and meanwhile they do have some internal business do the Leafs and most notable among those are two pending unrestricted free agents in Mitch Marner and John Tavares. And I’ll start with Tavares and where things start with him. It sounds like there have been discussions throughout the season between his camp and the Leafs. I think there’s a good understanding of what that next contract needs to look like for Tavares. But at this point in time it does not sound like that is close. The term given to me was “doubtful” in terms of a potential outlook to see this deal done by the deadline on March 7. The reason that’s notable is because one, Tavares is having a great year, over 30 goals and 70 points is kind of where he’s trending towards. And two, teams tend to know what everything else looks like before bringing in players externally. But in this case that might not be in the offing.

Pierre LeBrun: And speaking of pending unrestricted free agent centres, contending teams are keeping a close eye on the Seattle Kraken and Yanni Gourde, who had surgery on Jan. 31 for a sports hernia. At the time, the team announced that he’d be gone five-to-seven weeks. Well, five weeks is March 7, the day of the trade deadline. He’s already resumed skating and his objective, according to sources, is to try and come back and play next week on March 4, a few days before the deadline. I wonder why? And yes, Gourde, who has a modified no-trade, would like to join a contender. He won two Stanley Cups in Tampa as you’ll remember and I always saw him as a potential fit with Toronto by the way if they strike out on those bigger names that Dregs talked about at the top. Keep an eye on Gourde perhaps as a fit for the Leafs.

Duthie: Oilers fans, as well as the rest of Canadians, had this great high of watching their guy Connor McDavid score the winning goal in 4 Nations. And then a hard dose of reality where they gave up 13 goals in two losses on the weekend causing minor hysteria over whether they need to go out and get another goalie. What are the chances that happens?

LeBrun: It’s not that likely at the moment. It’s not a priority discussion within that Oilers front office for a very specific reason. I don’t think the Oilers look at the goalies available on the market right now and say there’s a guy that’s an absolute guaranteed upgrade over Stuart Skinner. Of course the Oilers know that Skinner can play better and is going to need to play better. But they look at his playoff pedigree and feel that that guy is there and will be there. I’m not saying it’s impossible for them to trade for a goalie but I’m telling you it’s not a priority item for them because they don’t see that guy out there. I know a lot of people have linked John Gibson to the Edmonton Oilers in part because Gibson is willing to waive, we believe, to go to the Oilers and the Ducks are willing to trade him. But I don’t think the Oilers view John Gibson as an upgrade over Stuart Skinner, not to mention Gibson’s contract, a couple more years at $6.4 million. So, never say never but it doesn’t sound like as big of an issue for the Oilers as it is for their fanbase.

Duthie: Seth Jones would like to go to a contender from Chicago. Tricky deal with his term and the fact that contenders don’t have a lot of cap room. Would Dallas be the ideal fit perhaps?

Johnston: Well there’s all kinds of reasons to connect the player and the team. I mean, for starters, Seth Jones would love to play in Dallas, it’s a place he spent some of his childhood. He has a no movement clause and the Stars, historically, had interest in Jones. In fact they might have traded for him back in 2021 when he went to Chicago except for an important fact – they weren’t going to give him the kind of contract he signed. Which is a $9.5 million long-term deal. And I think ultimately whether this happens or not comes down to can Chicago eat enough of the contract to get that number lower. Because certainly it’s not appealing to Dallas now if it wasn’t back then. And what do they want back? It sounds as though Chicago wants players back, this isn’t just a futures deal. And the Stars like their team, they’re in position to try and challenge. So that’s a lot of puzzle pieces to tray and fit together. But I do think that there is a reason to at least connect them from a high level.

Duthie: And finally, the IIHF seemed a little bit caught off guard by the NHL’s firm plans to have a World Cup schedule?

Dreger: Yeah, without the IIHF I might add in 2028. And you’re right, the NHL Players’ Association ruffled international feathers. And the reality is, talks between the IIHF and the NHL and the NHLPA haven’t gone well for quite some time. But there’s been more positive discussions among the three sides of late. And the expectation is they will meet either this week or early next week.

Duthie: After what we watched getting best-on-best every couple of years would be the greatest gift for hockey fans.