{"id":495555,"date":"2026-03-10T00:20:16","date_gmt":"2026-03-10T00:20:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/495555\/"},"modified":"2026-03-10T00:20:16","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T00:20:16","slug":"thats-a-bigger-problem-than-missing-the-playoffs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/495555\/","title":{"rendered":"that’s a bigger problem than missing the playoffs"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t \"Toronto <\/p>\n

Photo credit: Sergei Belski-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Matthew Knies was reportedly shopped around during the trade deadline to crickets, and that silence shows perhaps Toronto doesn’t have the leverage they thought.<\/p>\n

At the trade deadline, the Maple Leafs made a few moves but nothing that would have blown things up significantly, not because there weren’t rumours, but nobody to pay.<\/p>\n

Friedman confirms Maple Leafs put Knies on the market<\/p>\n

Friedman appeared on Real Kyper and Bourne, reporting that the Maple Leafs were listening to offers on Knies, and that if teams thought they had a serious blockbuster deal then they’re all ears:<\/p>\n

They just said if you wanna make us a huge offer that would make us think about Knies, they wanted people to know that, if you’re serious…we’d look at it.<\/p>\n

Knies, 23, is a blossoming power forward who has a fantastic shot, elite physical play, is an underrated playmaker who happens to also be 6-foot-3, 232 pounds and has proven to be a top-line NHL player.<\/p>\n

In 222 games he has 145 points (60 goals, 85 assists) to go along with 475 hits and 101 blocks, and recently just re-upped for a fairly reasonable six-year deal worth $7.75-million per season.<\/p>\n

No team wanted to pay the price however, and the silence speaks volumes<\/p>\n

But no one bit on a player of that calibre, which is quite surprising given that Knies has such a bright future ahead of him, and has barely scratched the surface of what he can do in the NHL.<\/p>\n

St. Louis didn’t dangle Robert Thomas or Jordan Kyrou, and there were no elite defencemen on the market who could even start a conversation; LA wasn’t going to give up Brandt Clarke or Quinton Byfield either.<\/p>\n

Also, as reasonable as $7.75-million is for a player of his stature, that’s a lot of money committed in a world where the majority of NHL teams are fighting against the cap.<\/p>\n

This isn’t a Knies problem, it’s a leverage issue<\/p>\n

It’s starting to feel like Toronto’s leverage with Knies is less than they thought, and perhaps some teams are hesitant give up such a package for a bit on an unknown.<\/p>\n

Knies has been good but prone to inconsistencies, and he’s already dealt with some injury issues in his young career.<\/p>\n

Look at the complete downfall of the Maple Leafs this season. Why would teams give up anything for Knies knowing he’s been a part of a failing team?<\/p>\n

Toronto would like to think Knies can bring back multiple first round picks, a star defenceman, or a haul of prospects but the reality of the situation is they would be lucky to get anything halfway decent.<\/p>\n

So at that point, you’re going to get the minimal amount teams are willing to part with and hoping he just bites on the deal and it’s way better for Toronto to keep Knies and allow him to become a leader and grow into a superstar.<\/p>\n

As crazy as a package for Matthew Knies could end up being, it’s not going to be anything close to what Toronto wants and they only have themselves to blame thanks to their previous mismanagement.<\/p>\n

Previously on Hockey Patrol<\/p>\n

POLL<\/p>\n

7 HOURS AGO|218 ANSWERS<\/p>\n

The Maple Leafs shopped Knies and got silence: that’s a bigger problem than missing the playoffs<\/p>\n

Should Toronto trade Matthew Knies?<\/p>\n

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