The Toronto Maple Leafs were the busiest team in the National Hockey League a day before NHL Free Agency. In the process, June 30, 2025 will forever be remembered as a significant day in the history of the franchise. The Maple Leafs made two trades. The most significant deal came with the Vegas Golden Knights as they traded right winger Mitch Marner of Markham, Ontario to Vegas for center Nicolas Roy of Amos, Quebec. Marner has been a significant part of the Maple Leafs for the last decade, but could not find the necessary chemistry with William Nylander and Auston Matthews to win a Stanley Cup. The Maple Leafs also acquired left winger Matias Maccelli of Turku, Finland from the Utah Mammoth for a conditional third round pick in the 2027 NHL Entry Draft.
Mitch Marner
Seeing Marner leave Toronto has the potential to sting among many Maple Leafs fans. Marner was an instrumental part of the Maple Leafs forward group on even strength and the power-play. This past season, he had 102 points, the most on the team. Only three other Maple Leafs in the history of the franchise has had 100 points in a single regular season. They are Darryl Sittler, Doug Gilmour and Auston Matthews.
The fact that the Leafs are trading Marner can be understood by some. That was the fact that Marner could not perform at the same level in the postseason as the regular season. He only had one point in his last four playoff games against the Florida Panthers as the Maple Leafs were eliminated from the second round of the playoffs by the eventual Stanley Cup champions. After being traded to Vegas, Marner signed an eight year deal worth $96 million.
Nicolas Roy
Roy is joining his third NHL team after two seasons in Carolina and six seasons in Vegas. He had 15 goals and 16 assists for 31 points in 71 games this past season.
Matias Maccelli
Maple Leafs fans will be hoping they see the Maccelli that had 106 points with the Arizona Coyotes from 2022 to 2024, than the 18 points in 55 games with the Utah Hockey Club in 2024 to 2025. This past season, Maccelli had eight goals and 10 assists. He was a -13 with eight penalty minutes, three power-play points, 86 shots on goal, six faceoff wins, 10 blocked shots, six hits, 11 takeaways and 46 giveaways.
