Robert Mayer-USA TODAY Sports
It might not make sense on the surface, but trading Phil Kessel could be exactly what the Toronto Maple Leafs need to build the foundation of a playoff team.
Unless a miracle happens, the 2014-15 Maple Leafs aren’t making the playoffs, and unless an even bigger miracle happens, the 2015-16 Maple Leafs likely won’t make them either. Toronto has no cap room, a core that can’t make the playoffs in the weak Eastern Conference and virtually no blue-chip prospects waiting to come save the day in the near future. That combination suggests it’s time to completely overhaul this Maple Leafs roster and start all over with a total rebuild.
One way to kick-start the rebuild would be by trading the team’s best player. Kessel carries the most value on the team and would provide Toronto a significant package in return for the superstar. If the Maple Leafs could swap Kessel for potential pieces to be used as building blocks for the future, it could go a long way in helping build the foundation for a perennial playoff team.
The problem with moving Kessel is once the franchise moves him they’ll eventually need to find a player exactly like him. Every team needs a scorer, and few players can put the puck in the net like Kessel which is what makes the decision to move him so difficult. Multiple teams would line up to pair their own superstar player with a guaranteed 30-goal scorer like Kessel. The New York Islanders would love to pair John Tavares with Kessel, and the Pittsburgh Penguins can only dream about a power play unit that includes Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, Chris Kunitz and Kessel.
However, no team knows the pain of losing an All-Star at a position and then needing to instantly fill the void like the Maple Leafs. Toronto couldn’t find Mats Sundin a quality winger for over a decade, and once he left town the Maple Leafs suddenly had no top-line center but an All-Star winger in Kessel. That reason alone might make dealing Kessel that much harder knowing how difficult it is to overcome the loss of an All-Star at any position.
At the same time, if Toronto does elect to rebuild, the club doesn’t have many assets they can swap for high-level prospects or draft picks. Most of the roster is filled with bad contracts or free agents which wouldn’t result in much value in return. Trading Kessel might be the only way the club can effectively start to strip down the team and build it back up, because he would be one of the only players who can acquire pieces worth building around.
