Over the last week or two, there has been a plethora of trade rumors regarding the Toronto Maple Leafs. The latest one could be one that has some members of Leafs Nation excited. There is a rumoured deal that would see the Maple Leafs land former forward Michael Bunting from the Nashville Predators in exchange for Matias Maccelli.
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It is no secret that Maccelli has struggled since joining the Maple Leafs this season. It seemed that it was always going to be a top six role or bust for him. And since he hasn’t really fit with anyone in the top six, Craig Berube has elected to play other players in the bottom six. However, if they were able to pull off this player swap, it could reunite Bunting on the top line with Auston Matthews and create a very interesting top line with Matthew Knies on the other wing.
Bunting for Maccelli Player Swap
For the Maple Leafs, making a player swap that includes Maccelli makes a ton of sense. As of right now, he is just sitting in the press box as a healthy scratch. However, if they were able to trade him and bring in someone like Bunting who could be a useful top six player, it would be a smart move for Brad Treliving.
Over Bunting’s career, he hasn’t had the same success that he did after leaving the Maple Leafs’ organization. During his time with the club, he scored a career high 63 points in 79 games. And then followed it up with 49 points in 82 games. The only true downside to his game is sometimes his emotions get the best of him and he takes questionable penalties. But that is something that has lessened over the course of his career. If he can return to his previous form if he were to join the Maple Leafs, it seems like a no brainer trade.
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As for Maccelli, he has struggled this season, plain and simple. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to return to his previous form where he scored 49 and 57 points in back to back seasons. Even during his short time with the Maple Leafs, he just hasn’t seemed to be able to gel with anyone on the team. He has four goals and five assists for nine points in 22 games. There is a good chance that he will return to the lineup before he was to be traded. But all signs do point to him being dealt at or before the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline.
How the Maple Leafs Can Make it Work
In terms of the actual trade and how it would work. The Maple Leafs will need to get creative in order to take on the entire contract of Bunting’s. He earns $4.5 million and is a pending unrestricted free agent at the end of the 2025-26 season. Whereas Maccelli only earns $3.4 million, and since the Maple Leafs don’t have $1.1 million in available cap space, they would need to find a way to make it work. The best way to make the money work would be to move Brandon Carlo’s contract to LTIR. Which would give them $3.4 million in available cap space to use.
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If there is a pathway to make the trade work, it makes a lot of sense for both sides. The Maple Leafs would add a top six forward that is familiar with the players he would be playing alongside. As for the Predators, they would be shedding salary and could potentially even flip Maccelli at the deadline for a draft pick to a contending team.
