The Toronto Maple Leafs’ current situation has the club turning over stones to find more scoring help. The Leafs’ embarrassing 6-3 loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday night proved the club is far from out of the woods.
While GM Brad Treliving did well to avoid a panicked pursuit of Quinn Hughes, he’s far from sitting idly this season. The prevailing chatter has been the Maple Leafs’ search for another top-six forward.
Ideally, this forward could either play on the top line with Auston Matthews and Matthew Knies, or gel with John Tavares and William Nylander. One name that insider David Pagnotta of the Fourth Period suggests Toronto could be looking at is Mason Marchment of the Seattle Kraken.
Pagnotta wrote the following about the Maple Leafs’ potential interest in Marchment:
“Toronto continues to look for a top-six addition – along with half the league – and in addition to Max Domi, whose name is still floating out there, Mattias Maccelli is also available. One target may be Seattle winger Mason Marchment, who Leafs GM Brad Treliving tried to land in June before he was dealt to the Kraken.”
Marchment was a cap casualty this past summer. The Dallas Stars needed to clear room, and so, they ended up moving the 30-year-old to the Kraken. While Marchment isn’t off to a blistering start this season, his four goals and 13 points in 27 games are good enough to warrant a look. He scored 22 goals in back-to-back seasons in Dallas.
So, Marchment could be a decent fit in the Maple Leafs’ middle six.
Maple Leafs Passed on Marchment Once Already
Interestingly, Marchment got his start in Toronto. He went undrafted, eventually signing an AHL contract in 2016. However, Marchment didn’t make it to the NHL until the 2019-20 season. He played just four games and found himself as part of a trade for Denis Malgin.
Marchment landed with the Florida Panthers, scoring 47 points in 54 games during the 2021-22 season. That season allowed him to sign a hefty free-agent contract with the Dallas Stars. Since then, Marchment has been a solid NHLer.
So, it seems only fitting that the Maple Leafs would be looking to reacquire a player they once passed on.
Marchment Would Not Solve Toronto’s Scoring issues
Even if the Maple Leafs did reacquire Marchment, he wouldn’t solve the club’s scoring woes. Marchment isn’t a 40-goal scorer. He isn’t likely going to draw top-line minutes with Matthews and Knies.
Ultimately, landing Marchment would be more of the same for the Maple Leafs. They would get a solid, if unspectacular, forward. While getting reliable depth scoring is always crucial, the Leafs would still need more reliable scoring. Hence, more trades could be on the horizon.
Landing Marchment could be a good start. But unless the Kraken were willing to take someone like Matias Maccelli or Max Domi, the cost to get Marchment may not be commensurate with the Maple Leafs’ needs at this point in the season.
Maple Leafs Linked to Kraken Forward: Insider