The Toronto Maple Leafs were active on trade deadline day on Friday (Mar. 7) making several moves to bolster their roster as they look to make a push for their first Stanley Cup since 1967. They brought in defender Brandon Carlo from the Boston Bruins in exchange for Fraser Minten, a first-round pick, and a fourth-round pick, and also brought in Scott Laughton from the Philadelphia Flyers. They successfully cleared cap space by trading Conor Timmins and Connor Dewar to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for a draft pick, giving them the space they needed to make the additions they wanted too. However, there was one move they seemingly tried to make before pivoting elsewhere.
Related: Grading the Maple Leafs Trading Timmins & Dewar to the Penguins
An analyst, Nick Kypreos, suggested that the Maple Leafs had the best offer on the table for superstar forward Mikko Rantanen, but the Carolina Hurricanes did not accept their offer, and instead, he was traded to the Dallas Stars.
Hey @SamAMcKee Your @MapleLeafs had the best offer on table for Rantanen today and the @Canes refused to take it.
— Nick Kypreos (@RealKyper) March 7, 2025
We’ll discuss in detail and so much more on trade deadline day. #RealKyperandBourne coming up now with @jtbourne and @DougMaclean 5-7pm est @Sportsnet @FAN590
It was revealed that the package from the Maple Leafs included prospects Easton Cowan and Fraser Minten, as well as a first-round pick heading to the Hurricanes in exchange for Rantanen. Unfortunately for them, they chose to send him to the Stars in exchange for Logan Stankoven, two first-round draft picks, and two third-round draft picks. Thinking about what a potential superteam could have looked like, it’s fair to assume the Hurricanes didn’t want to trade Rantanen to a conference rival.
What Would Rantanen Have Meant for the Maple Leafs?
Rantanen didn’t fit in well at all with the Hurricanes, and considering he was a pending unrestricted free agent who has a ton of value as a superstar forward, it’s no surprise the Stars weren’t the only team looking at bringing him in for a playoff run. It’s safe to assume Rantanen didn’t want to rush into a decision with the Hurricanes and wanted to play out the season, but that was too risky for them, so moving him was the next best option. The Stars were able to lock him up to an eight-year extension worth $12 million annually as well, but what would it have meant if the Maple Leafs were the team that acquired Rantanen?
Players who get traded twice in one season usually are just depth players looking to find a forever home, not superstars who are over a point-per-game pace on the season, or in their careers. Rantanen, who is 28 years old, has scored 27 goals and added 43 assists for 70 points through 62 games this season. Throughout his career, he has scored 289 goals and added 398 assists for 687 points through 632 games which comes out to a 1.09 points-per-game average. In just 13 games with the Hurricanes, he had two goals and four assists for six points.
Bringing in a guy of Rantanen’s caliber would’ve made the Maple Leafs the Stanley Cup betting favourites, without a doubt. The skill he has is incredible. If he was placed alongside Mitchell Marner, Auston Matthews, John Tavares, and William Nylander, they would have been a nightmare to defend. It also would have likely proven to fans that the team isn’t messing around and is willing to go all-in to end their horrendous drought for a championship.
Unfortunately, we will never know what that could have been like, and while the Maple Leafs did well pivoting and bringing in different assets, knowing they could have had Rantanen and missed out on one of the strongest players in the NHL has to sting.
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