{"id":459881,"date":"2026-02-16T16:24:21","date_gmt":"2026-02-16T16:24:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/459881\/"},"modified":"2026-02-16T16:24:21","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T16:24:21","slug":"could-the-maple-leafs-cash-in-on-the-oilers-buying-at-the-deadline","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/459881\/","title":{"rendered":"Could the Maple Leafs Cash in On The Oilers Buying at the Deadline?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>As the March 6 NHL Trade Deadline gets closer, the situation in Toronto is starting to look a lot different. We\u2019re used to seeing the Maple Leafs as buyers at this time of year. But sitting six points out of a playoff spot with little time before the deadline changes things. Meanwhile, the Edmonton Oilers are desperate to finally win a Stanley Cup after falling just short the last two seasons.<\/p>\n<p>If the Maple Leafs decide to move some players and reset, they might find that Edmonton is their best trade partner.<\/p>\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/globalnews.ca\/edmonton\/program\/oilers-now-with-bob-stauffer\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">report from Elliotte Friedman<\/a> suggested the Oilers are looking at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/m\/mcmanbo02.html\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Bobby McMann<\/a>. On paper, it\u2019s a logical fit for Edmonton. McMann brings the heavy, physical style their bottom six has been missing.<\/p>\n<p>He already has 19 goals and carries a $1.35 million cap hit, which makes him a significant trade chip for Toronto. Edmonton is tight against the cap, so a player like McMann fits their budget. If the Maple Leafs are willing to retain a bit of salary, they could push for a high draft pick along with a quality prospect in return.<\/p>\n<p>Pagnotta Links Roy and Ekman-Larsson to Edmonton<\/p>\n<p>The rumours don\u2019t stop with McMann. <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/OilersNation\/status\/2021396266236903912?s=20\" rel=\"nofollow\">David Pagnotta has also linked<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/e\/ekmanol01.html\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Oliver Ekman-Larsson<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/r\/royni01.html\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Nicolas Roy <\/a>to the Oilers as potential targets. Edmonton\u2019s defence has been inconsistent, and a veteran like Ekman-Larsson could bring some stability to their top four.<\/p>\n<p><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1000\" height=\"500\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/Oliver-Ekman-Larsson-Maple-Leafs.jpg\" alt=\"Oliver Ekman Larsson Maple Leafs\" class=\"wp-image-92957\"  \/>Oliver Ekman Larsson Maple Leafs<\/p>\n<p>At the same time, Roy would address their need at third-line centre. His $3 million cap hit isn\u2019t impossible to move, especially if Edmonton clears space by moving <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/m\/mangian01.html\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Andrew Mangiapane<\/a>. As Pagnotta noted, the Oilers wouldn\u2019t just be offering a draft pick. A deal for Ekman-Larsson could include <a href=\"https:\/\/nhltradetalk.com\/insider-maple-leafs-trade-return-from-oilers-for-oliver-ekman-larsson\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Isaac Howard as part of the return<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>The most interesting name to watch might be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/s\/stolaan01.html\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Anthony Stolarz<\/a>. Even though the Oilers added <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/j\/jarrytr01.html\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Tristan Jarry<\/a> and called up <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/i\/ingraco01.html\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Connor Ingram<\/a>, their goaltending situation has still been shaky. Stolarz recently returned from injury, but he showed last season and again on Feb. 3 against Edmonton what he can bring to a crease. That game could have served as an audition.<\/p>\n<p>With <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/w\/wolljo01.html\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Joseph Woll <\/a>and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hockey-reference.com\/players\/h\/hildede01.html\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Dennis Hildeby<\/a> ready for more responsibility in Toronto, Stolarz could become the odd man out. If Edmonton wants a veteran who can step in and make timely saves, he might be the answer.<\/p>\n<p>As always, we\u2019ll see how this unfolds after the Olympic break. If the Maple Leafs handle this the right way, they could walk away with a strong return from an Oilers team that feels the pressure to win now.<\/p>\n<p>Next: <a href=\"https:\/\/nhltradetalk.com\/ex-nhler-suggests-maple-leafs-get-star-defenseman-for-auston-matthews\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Ex-NHLer Suggests Maple Leafs Get Star Defenseman for Auston Matthews<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\tDiscover more from NHL Trade Talk<\/p>\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center\" style=\"margin-top:10px;margin-bottom:10px;font-size:15px\">Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/NHLTradeTalkweblogo4.png\"\/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As the March 6 NHL Trade Deadline gets closer, the situation in Toronto is starting to look a&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":459882,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5125],"tags":[3819,198,146,5300,5,4,1337,24,782],"class_list":{"0":"post-459881","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-edmonton-oilers","8":"tag-bobby-mcmann","9":"tag-edmonton","10":"tag-edmonton-oilers","11":"tag-edmontonoilers","12":"tag-hockey","13":"tag-nhl","14":"tag-nicolas-roy","15":"tag-oilers","16":"tag-oliver-ekman-larsson"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nhl\/116081242575838322","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/459881","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=459881"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/459881\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/459882"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=459881"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=459881"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=459881"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}