Toronto Maple Leafs captain John Tavares has been the subject of trade rumors this summer and one trade pitch has him being sent to the Seattle Kraken in a blockbuster.
Tavares is entering the final year of his seven-year $77 million deal he signed as a free agent in 2018 to play for his hometown team. As he’s in the final year of his deal, he has been the subject of trade rumors due to Toronto struggling in the playoffs.
Website PuckPedia has a new tool called PuckGM that lets users create their own trades, and one user proposed a deal that sees Tavares get dealt to Seattle in a multi-player deal
Maple Leafs get:
Yanni Gourde
Jaden Schwartz
2025 second-round pick
Kraken get:
John Tavares
On paper, the trade pitch makes sense as Seattle would get a veteran leader to help out their young core for one season, and could possibly re-sign him after the year. However, it would make more sense for the draft pick to be going to Seattle rather than Toronto to even up the deal.
The Maple Leafs, meanwhile, would get Gourde who is a perfect third-line center for Toronto, as he was an effective third-line center for the Tampa Bay Lightning that won back-to-back Stanely Cups.
Schwartz, meanwhile, is on a bit of a decline but would be a good bottom-six forward for Toronto to add more depth to their roster.
Tavares Wants to Stay With Maple Leafs
Following the Maple Leafs being eliminated in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs by the Boston Bruins, Tavares made it clear he wanted to remain with Toronto.
“I haven’t put much thought to it, but I mean, I love playing here,” Tavares said at the year-end press conference. “I think it’s a remarkable place to play. And, you know, when I committed here six years ago, you know, obviously I saw a tremendous amount of talent and an amazing hockey market and organization that’s fully committed to winning…
“I haven’t accomplished what we’ve been working to accomplish, but it’s been an amazing six years for myself. Being a Maple Leaf, obviously becoming the captain, something very special I don’t take for granted,” Tavares added.
Tavares recorded 29 goals and 36 assists for 65 points in 80 games. He added 1 goal and 1 assist for 2 points in 7 playoff games.
Insider Claims Toronto Contemplating Stripping Tavares of Captaincy
Tavares was named the captain of the Maple Leafs on October 2, 2019, before the season opener. It was his second year in Toronto, but as he enters the final year of his deal, NHL insider Nick Kypreos revealed the Maple Leafs are contemplating taking the captaincy away.
“From what I’m hearing, the Leafs are contemplating taking the captaincy away from him and giving it to Auston (Matthews). They will talk about it. I’m not saying it’s going to happen, but it’s real,” Kypreos said on July 1 on Real Kyper & Bourne.
If the Maple Leafs do remove Tavares’ captaincy, Auston Matthews will likely become the new captain for Toronto.
The Maple Leafs will open its 2024-25 NHL season on the road against the Montreal Canadiens on Oct. 9.
Cole Shelton covers the NHL for Heavy.com. He has covered pro and college sports since 2016, including bylines at BJ Penn, USA Today, SB Nation, Rotowire, Canadian Baseball Network and more. More about Cole Shelton
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