The Maple Leafs spent part of Saturday morning telling everyone why trading Fraser Minten likely will come back to haunt them.
The wasn’t the way they put it, mind you, but there’s no doubt whether Minten will have an impact on the Atlantic Division rivalry between the Leafs and Boston Bruins for years to come.
“Very mature for his age, very high hockey IQ, two-way centreman, has really good instincts with the game,” Leafs coach Craig Berube said. “Defensive responsibilities, but has offensive upside. He’s a good player.”
Said defenceman Morgan Rielly: “He cares a lot, he’s very committed, he’s a smart kid. Plays the game the right way.”
Minten, the Leafs’ second-round pick in 2022, makes his return to Toronto for the first time since the club traded him to the Bruins in March. He’s centring Boston’s third line with Tanner Jeannot and Mark Kastelic on the wings.
In 16 games with the Bruins, Minten is averaging 13 minutes 36 seconds of ice time and has two goals and three assists.
You will recall that Minten was the central piece in a significant package that the Leafs gave up to get defenceman Brandon Carlo. Included in the deal was the Leafs’ first-round pick in 2026 and a fourth-round pick in 2025. The Bruins retained 15% of Carlo’s salary.
Even if the first-round pick, which is top-five protected, doesn’t work out for the Bruins, our take is that they’re going to be better off in the long run with Minten than the Leafs will be with Carlo.
If the first-round pick becomes an integral piece for the Bruins? The Leafs might want to look away.
Carlo is a good defenceman and has another year left on his contract after 2025-26, but he didn’t help the Leafs get close to a Stanley Cup last spring. There’s no guarantee he will in each of the next two playoffs either.
Minten is 21 and should have many good seasons in the National Hockey League ahead of him. Given his youth and potential, we would argue that he will have a greater role in any Bruins playoff success than Carlo will in Toronto. It’s not a stretch to think that Minten one day could have a hand in eliminating the Leafs in a playoff round, considering the history of meetings between the Leafs and Bruins in the postseason.
“It’ll be a fun game tonight, one I was looking forward to,” Minten said. “It’s a little strange, coming back on the other side. You feel the excitement that you felt when you were a Leaf. The big game, it’s going to be a big stage, that kind of thing.
“(His time with the Leafs) was positive, was awesome. First team to give me an opportunity to play in the NHL and chase my dreams, so nothing but really good memories.”
Minten said he and Leafs prospect Easton Cowan talk “almost every day.” Cowan, sent to the Marlies this week, is living in Minten’s condo in Toronto.
“We’re kind of in the same sort of spot that I was in last year here, for him,” Minten said. “It’s easy to relate to each other. There’s not a lot of people that understand what that’s like when you’re a young guy coming from junior, especially a guy like him.
“He has been a star for years now, and it’s a huge transition jumping into a different role, different league, everything like that. It helps me talking to him, and hopefully helps him, the friendship that we have.”
PRIMEAU CLAIMED
Cayden Primeau’s tenure with the Leafs is over.
The goaltender on Saturday was reclaimed off waivers by the Carolina Hurricanes, not quite a month after the Leafs claimed him from Carolina.
With Joseph Woll’s return to the Leafs not far off — he’s getting in some game conditioning with the Toronto Marlies — Primeau’s time with the Leafs was coming to an end one way or another.
Now that he has been claimed, the Leafs don’t have to worry about giving him starts with the Marlies, which would have taken away from Dennis Hildeby and Artur Akhtyamov, or finding Primeau another place to play.
Primeau was not good for Toronto, posting an .838 save percentage while going 2-1-0.
Hildeby was going to back up Anthony Stolarz against the Bruins no matter what happened with Primeau. The Leafs officially recalled Hildeby from the Marlies after Primeau, who was claimed by the Leafs on Oct. 6, was reclaimed.
LINEUP UPDATES
• Defenceman Chris Tanev went for a solo skate on Saturday morning, the first time he has been on the ice since he suffered an upper-body injury on Nov. 1 in Philadelphia against the Flyers.
“Just progressing in the right direction, I’d say, more than anything,” Berube said.
• Centre Alex Steeves was recalled by the Bruins from Providence of the American Hockey League and will make his Boston debut in place of injured Casey Mittelstadt.
Steeves spent four years in the Leafs organization before signing in free agency with the Bruins this past summer.
“I absolutely wouldn’t trade my four years here for anything,” Steeves said. “Grew so much as a person, as a player.
“Ultimately, I decided that I wanted to see what kind of other opportunities were out there because I wasn’t able to break in here. There’s no bad blood or anything. I only have good things to say about Toronto.”
Steeves played in a total of 14 games for the Leafs, scoring one goal and recording two assists. Steeves scored 105 goals with the Marlies during his time in the organization, setting a franchise record, but never was able to parlay that into a long look with the NHL club.
• The Bruins won’t have veteran defenceman Charlie McAvoy, who is back in Boston for a family matter. He leads the Bruins in ice time at 24 minutes 10 seconds a game. Defenceman Mason Lohrei, a healthy scratch for the past five games, will be in the lineup.