Toronto Maple Leafs lack of depth at one position to be exposed next season

Sportsnet reporter Luke Fox made a post to X showcasing just how thin the Maple Leafs are at the position heading into next season. He lists the top five Leafs left wingers by ice time from last season. At that top of that list is Tyler Bertuzzi, who of course, is no longer with the team.

Right away the Leafs are more thin at the position than they were this time last year. More troubling is the fact that the in-house options at left wing certainly are not looking great for Toronto at the moment. Matthew Knies likely is at the top of the depth chart, but is he really ready for a full-time top-line role in the NHL? That has yet to be seen. Last season, he averaged just under 14 minutes per game, which is more in line with a 3rd line role than a 1st line. There is also Nick Robertson, who would probably slot in just behind Knies if it were not for the fact that he has requested a trade. Of course, Treliving is not obligated to honor that request, but taking that route could hurt him later on down the road.

Then there is highly touted rookie Easton Cowan. Cowan could very well slot into a middle-six role next season, but relying on him to be a consistent offensive producer would be putting a lot of pressure on the rookie just two years removed from his draft season. Ahead of Cowan on the depth chart, at least for now, is Bobby McMann, who was a nice revelation for the Leafs last season. However, can the 27-year-old repeat his performance from last season, or was it just a flash in the pan? His underlying numbers are mixed, but most of his value comes from his finishing ability. If he can keep that up, maybe he can slot into a 3rd line role, but at this point, the Leafs have several candidates for that position while they lack any good candidates to play on the top line.

With that being said, the Leafs have just over 1 million dollars in cap space according to Puckpedia. Furthermore, there are very few options still available in free agency this late into the offseason. One notable player still available is Max Pacioretty, but his injury history makes him a liability, even on a league minimum deal. Treliving will not be able to rely on him to perform, let alone skate, on a nightly basis. So what will he do to solve this issue? Perhaps he just see how things go at the start of the year and adjust accordingly.

Source: MapleLeafsDaily
Maple Leafs facing a concerning issue ahead of the 2024-25 season