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Leafs acquire and extend Kirill Marchenko

Chayka says that Wood will start with the Marlies and get a chance to work his way back to the NHL. His contract will likely never look good but I still think there's some potential there as far as a 4th line player goes. His and Duhaime's speed would be crazy together if he can.
 
Merzlikins recovery period was expected to be 4-6 months, with his surgery taking place a month ago. So barring a set-back he would be expected to return at some point this season.
 
10 team no trade list

They could waive him and bury him with $3.28 M cap charge if they can't find someone to take his contract - or find a new home for Stolarz if he's healthy enough to play effectively for the Leafs ...
Question was about Marchenko, not Merzlikins.

It doesn't look like any details about Kirill's deal has been released yet aside from the basics.
 
32 Thoughts had that fun note about Marchenko being amenable to extending in Montreal over the summer, but not so sure about Toronto.

He must've watched the Matthews and McKenna shows in preseason.
 
32 Thoughts had that fun note about Marchenko being amenable to extending in Montreal over the summer, but not so sure about Toronto.

He must've watched the Matthews and McKenna shows in preseason.

He wore 34 in the KHL because AM34 was his favorite player.

Edit: Not jokes.

 
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Now I gotta change my spreadsheet and it's making me nervous.
I've cut it down from 10,000 to 8.

Good to see you back. I can assure you that you didn't miss anything last season other than repeated opportunities to grind your teeth to the point of needing maxilofacial surgery.
 
Looking ahead just a little, Matthews has to answer a similar question Marchenko did, by July 1, 2027. I wonder if providing Matthews a better winger to play with (Knies was team worst -30 last season) covered part of their reasoning to proceed with this deal. It is going to be a tough sell regardless as only 3 players on the starting 20 are under 29. Most of their talent is on the back nine of their career. They're not true contenders this year and their window of becoming a true contender can't be very long, if ever, due to declination from age and limited prospects in their system. If they don't make the playoffs, they have little hope of re-signing him. I'm guessing Marchenko can help them more than Knies this year. It will be interesting to see what trade protection Marchenko got .. Nylander, Raddysh & Tanev are currently the only players under contract 3 yrs from now with no move protection should Matthews leave.

I'd been coming around to your rather bleak view -- Matthews's departure inevitable as the Shanaplan window closes -- but, since the new regime's taken over, I'm feeling this could go differently.

Part of that is draft luck, but the result is what it is: is there any team that's had as good a regular season win percentage as the Leafs over last 3 years (even including last year's disaster) that boasts a talent like McKenna? That's added as many guys who might be something in 2-3 years? The Athletic ranks teams' under-23 pipelines. I think the Leafs are in the top third in the league there, and in points over the last few seasons.

Other players around the league seem to be responding positively. The Leafs got the top UFA this summer to sign here. He's a hometown guy, so maybe that doesn't mean much, but then Marchenko extended here, after (according to Friedman) being very skeptical of the team when trade rumors floated several months back.

If I were Matthews, I'd still probably sign my next deal as a short term thing with some guys I like to play with (Werenski? McDavid?) on the team that can fit us and is closest to the Cup. But he might like Toronto more than I do! It's a pretty great city if you're rich
 
I'd been coming around to your rather bleak view -- Matthews's departure inevitable as the Shanaplan window closes -- but, since the new regime's taken over, I'm feeling this could go differently.

Part of that is draft luck, but the result is what it is: is there any team that's had as good a regular season win percentage as the Leafs over last 3 years (even including last year's disaster) that boasts a talent like McKenna? That's added as many guys who might be something in 2-3 years? The Athletic ranks teams' under-23 pipelines. I think the Leafs are in the top third in the league there, and in points over the last few seasons.

Other players around the league seem to be responding positively. The Leafs got the top UFA this summer to sign here. He's a hometown guy, so maybe that doesn't mean much, but then Marchenko extended here, after (according to Friedman) being very skeptical of the team when trade rumors floated several months back.

If I were Matthews, I'd still probably sign my next deal as a short term thing with some guys I like to play with (Werenski? McDavid?) on the team that can fit us and is closest to the Cup. But he might like Toronto more than I do! It's a pretty great city if you're rich
I'm a Leafs fan. I want them to win. I don't like having a 'bleak view'. I'm just trying to deal with the facts. In spite of that, I'm still hoping for the best. I am more optimistic than the start of training camp but it is limited optimism - I'm not optimistic we're going to have a parade next spring. At some point, reality has to kick in.

Their prospect system got a boost from McKenna and a respectable draft. But Cowan and McKenna are already on the roster. Danford, Akhtyamov & Koblar might be able to help before Matthews' contract ends. Meanwhile, 22 players are signed for next season and when you add McKenna's likely bonus, they've pretty much spent the projected cap increase for next season already. A crop of UFAs next summer are unlikely to save us. And most of the players signed will be 30 or older next season. Chayka has boxed himself in. Those facts are fairly bleak. I continue to hope for the best.

If Bobrovsky turns his game around and stands on his head, maybe he takes them to the Conference finals. A fan can always hope. Marchenko. McKenna. Healthier Matthews. Healthy Tanev. Raddysh. Overhauled bottom 6. New coach & system that may suit them better. Not all the facts are bleak.

As you suggest, I also think our best hope for Matthews staying might be to entice him to sign for a short term extension. The chances of something long term seem very slim. The roster they have built is unsustainable for a bunch of future years. That probably ties into if they make the playoffs and are able to do some damage.

"In 82-game seasons during the salary cap era, just 10 of 75 teams four points out of the playoffs after games on Nov. 1 made the post-season. Fall behind early and you drown." Friedman today
50% of the Leafs roster has changed along with the coaching. They HAVE to get off to a good start which is usually tough after so much change to the roster and coaching. Again, not great facts but I'm cheering for them.
 
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