Auston Matthews won’t be getting traded by the Toronto Maple Leafs, and he seems committed to remaining with them despite some struggles this season. With that being said, anything can happen in the NHL, and there is always that slim chance the Maple Leafs consider moving him if the right deal came to them.
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The San Jose Sharks have emerged as a potential contender after a few seasons of rebuilding, and considering how strong their prospect pool is, it would make sense if they wanted to take a swing at a superstar like Matthews.
Matthews, who is 28 years old, has scored 26 goals and added 21 assists for 47 points through 50 games. Throughout his career, he has played 679 games, scoring 427 goals and adding 347 assists for 774 points, which comes out to a 1.14 points-per-game average.
Of course, Matthews would need to waive his trade protection, and the Sharks would need to find a way to make up some cap space, but if those two things can happen, what could that look like?
Keep in mind, this is a hypothetical idea. There is no indication that the Maple Leafs are looking to trade Matthews, nor that the Sharks have checked in on his availability.
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This would be a trade that shocks the league, and the Maple Leafs would need to bring back an incredible return to justify moving Matthews. The Sharks would also have to be willing to pay up big time, likely having to part with pieces that could help them in the future. However, a move like this moves from potential contenders to championship favourites.
Hypothetically, a trade looks like the Sharks acquiring Matthews in exchange for Collin Graf, John Klingberg, Shakir Mukhamadullin, the Oilers’ 2026 first-round pick, their own 2027 first-round pick, and their own 2029 third-round pick. I only added Klingberg in this deal to make the money work, but I would assume if that is someone they brought back, they would immediately try to flip him for more assets.
The Maple Leafs add Graf, who has been solid with the Sharks this season, scoring 15 goals and adding 16 assists for 31 points through 53 games. He is 23 years old and seems poised to be a permanent middle-six forward, if not a top-six forward. They also add Mukhamadullin, who needs to improve his two-way game, but has a high ceiling and could become a second-pairing defender.
Adding the draft capital in two first-round picks and a third-round pick gives them three new prospects, and while losing Matthews would hurt them, bringing back future assets like this gives them the chance to completely rebuild their team from the ground up and find a new identity with a younger core.
This is a trade that would shake the league to its core. The Maple Leafs would be starting over and heading into a rebuild after being a competitive team for several seasons. They would also be choosing to move on from their franchise superstar, which could come with plenty of backlash from fans. The Sharks would be making a splash in hopes of making a deep playoff run with an established star in Matthews.
While Matthews hasn’t had the playoff success with the Maple Leafs that fans have expected to see, a fresh start could be what he needs to finally make a push for his first Stanley Cup.
I don’t expect it to happen, but if the Maple Leafs were to ever consider trading Matthews, the Sharks would be at the top of my list for potential fits. Time will tell if he ever joins a new team, but for now, things seem fine between Matthews and the Maple Leafs.
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