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The Toronto Maple Leafs have yet to make a move upfront but one trade pitch with the New York Islanders changes that.
The website PuckPedia has a new tool called PuckGM that lets users create their own trades and one user proposed a deal that would see the Maple Leafs acquire Oliver Wahlstrom in a one-for-one swap.
Maple Leafs get:
Islanders get:
The one-for-one swap does make sense as it is a change of scenery for two players who are looking for bigger roles. Wahlstrom is a former first-round pick who hasn’t lived up to the hype, while Robertson is an RFA and has asked for a trade, and the two could just take the other player’s spot on the roster.
Wahlstrom was selected 11th overall in the 2018 NHL draft and signed a one-year $1 million deal with the Islanders this offseason. In his NHL career, Wahlstrom has skated in 193 games recording 34 goals and 33 assists for 67 points
Robertson, meanwhile, was drafted in the second round of the 2020 NHL draft but hasn’t been given a major role with Toronto. With that, the RFA forward has asked for a trade as in his NHL career, he’s skated in just 87 games recording 17 goals and 17 assists for 34 points.
Robertson Asks for Trade From Maple Leafs
The 22-year-old is an RFA and does not have a contract for the upcoming season as he has asked for a trade and told the Maple Leafs he has no plans to re-sign, according to NHL insider Chris Johnston.
Despite the trade request, Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving says he expects Robertson to be an important player for Toronto this season.
“I have certainly known that there was some frustration with Nick, but we look at Nick as an excellent player,” Treliving said. “There is a great opportunity for Nick here. We need him to be a good player for us. I am not going to get into any speculation or public back-and-forth. We will just leave it at that and continue to move forward.”
If Robertson does re-sign with the Maple Leafs he would project as the team’s second or third-line left winger.
Wahlstrom a Trade Candidate
Despite Wahlstrom signing a one-year extension with the Islanders, the former first-round pick is considered a trade target.
Islanders general manager Lou Lamoriello said the team won’t just trade him away for nothing as they do need to get something in return.
“He’s been working very hard all summer and if we can get him an opportunity because it hasn’t worked out [we will], but we’re not just going to give him away,” Lamoriello said. “He’s still a hockey player. He, unfortunately, went through an injury which takes a long time to recover. I think he’s there. We’ll just wait and see.”
Wahlstrom tore his ACL during the 2022-23 NHL season which has hampered his development, but the 24-year-old believes he still could have been better.
“There’s no excuses in this business, but at the same time, I didn’t get in much puck touches last year with the injury,” Wahlstrom said on breakup day. “I never went through something like that, so I was expecting to be 100, 200 percent right off the bat. Being young, you don’t realize you gotta take baby steps coming back from injuries and things like that.”
The Islanders will open its 2024-25 NHL season at home on Oct. 10 against Utah.
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