While the focus of the hockey world is on a small town on the coast of the Black Sea and all but three of the Toronto Maple Leafs are enjoying some well deserved rest and recreation, GM Dave Nonis and his staff are undoubtedly strategizing what moves to make before the approaching March 5th trade deadline.
It is not expected that Toronto will make a significant transaction, such as trading Nazem Kadri or Jake Gardiner, but could be in the market for adding depth up front if the Leafs move a pending UFA forward who they feel will be asking for too much on a new contract or that they plan to not re-sign this summer.
A hint of whom Toronto could potentially deal may lie with some of their developing players with the Toronto Marlies, such as 22-year-old Jerry D’Amigo and 20-year-old Josh Leivo.
D’Amigo played mostly fourth line duty and as a penalty killer in his 19 game stint for with Toronto, but showed NHL-level speed and two-way skills honed during a three-year AHL apprenticeship. The Binghamton, NY native scored only one goal and one assist, but showed Leafs management that he could possibly be a fit on a fourth line capable of more than three or four minutes a night.
Leivo unexpectedly saw NHL action due to the suspension of David Clarkson and other roster absences and scored one goal and one assist in seven games. He has experienced some growing pains and suffered a hip flexor injury, but his 10 goals and 13 assists in 34 games is a sign that the Innisfil, ON native has the talent and physical tools to be an NHL contributor in the near future.
According to
Kyle Cicerella of Canadian Press , Leivo has played left wing with the Marlies, after playing mostly the right side during his stint with the Leafs.
“When you look at the Leafs roster with guys like (David) Clarkson, (Phil) Kessel, we have to maybe look at moving Josh Leivo over to the left wing for his long-term career,” Marlies coach Steve Spott said earlier in the month.
The right-handed shooting Leivo played a lot on the left side in junior with Sudbury and Kitchener and his ability to grow at that position could be his ticket to the big club next season.
Prospective free agents Nikolai Kulemin and Mason Raymond have mostly played the left side this season, although both have been pressed into service at other positions due to injuries. It is highly unlikely that the Leafs will be able to afford to re-sign Kulemin (making $2.8 Million) and Raymond(a bargain at $1 Million) and that Leivo, in the first year of a three-year entry-level contract making just under $800,000, is being groomed to replace one of the veterans.
The scenario is similar for Peter Holland, whose entry-level deal expires at the end of the 2013-14 season. With Dave Bolland returning to the lineup, the former Anaheim first rounder will probably be sent down to the Marlies, because he can still be without having to clear waivers. That demotion could be temporary if Bolland’s salary demands on a new deal are so out of whack that they force Nonis to trade the two-time Stanley Cup winner or let him walk away in July.
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