Perfect trade Predators must offer Leafs to Mitch Marner

The Nashville Predators need a star offensive player like Mitch Marner, who is on the verge of being traded to the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Leafs don’t want to trade Marner, but the writing could be on the wall as they battle an extreme cap crunch. Former general manager Kyle Dubas left the team in a tough situation when he signed Marner, Auston Matthews, John Tavares and Morgan Reilly to big contracts. William Nylander still needed to be signed, which new general manager Brad Treliving did with an $11.5 million contract.

The Leafs’ failure to reach the second round was a long-running drought and a joke in league circles. It was hard to believe how many times they failed to advance, including taking a 4-1 lead in Game 7 and a 3-1 lead in a series against two of their biggest rivals. Toronto advanced to the second round last season with a six-game series victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning. After defeating the first round demon, they figured it was time to do it again against the Bruins in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, a team that had beaten them in three straight first rounds in the 2010s. However , this did not happen as the Bruins won Game 7 in overtime.

The Leafs now have $18 million in cap space next offseason, but they have a defense they need to rebuild and lack a standout No. 1 goaltender. Goaltending is where the Predators come in for a trade, as they could look to trade one of their NHL goaltenders with a goaltender waiting in the wings with their AHL team at Milwaukee. What is the ideal trade for the Predators to bring in Mitch Marner from the Maple Leafs?

The Leafs land their new number 1

It makes more sense for the Leafs to solve their goaltending woes by acquiring one for Mitch Marner. If you look around the league, there are some interesting options on the net, but most won’t appreciate a trade to the Maple Leafs. The Calgary Flames have Jacob Markstom available, but they don’t have much room for Marner. The Boston Bruins have Linus Ullmark available, but neither team would risk these players going the other way and winning them a Stanley Cup. The only real option for a Mitch Marner trade is to try to pry Juuse Saros away from the Predators.

Saros has been a stud for the Predators, owning a save percentage above .900 every season. He was a worthy successor to Pekka Rinne, the best goaltender in Predators history. Ironically, the same situation could happen here with Yaroslav Askarov. Askarov has looked good in two appearances with the Predators this season, recording a .943 save percentage and a 1.47 goals-against average. He has been brilliant for Nashville’s AHL team and is ready to enter the NHL full-time. The only question for the Predators is whether they would rather have him sit behind Saros this season like Saros did with Rinne or take over the starting duties.

The argument for them to trade Saros is that he is in the final year of a $5 million deal. Saros will demand a lot more once he becomes a UFA in 2025, and the Predators may not be willing to pay him with Askarov there. The Predators should trade Saros if Askarov is their goal pick instead of letting him walk in free agency and getting nothing in return.

Here is the proposed deal to acquire Marner, who has a no-trade list and is expected to sign any potential destination heading into the final year of his contract.

The Leafs receive: Juuse Saros, 2025 1st round pick, Joakim Kemell, 2024 2nd round pick

The Predators receive: Mitch Marner

The Predators acquired Tampa Bay’s 2025 first-round pick as part of the haul they received for Tanner Jeannot. The extra first-round pick next year gives them the flexibility to trade their first-rounder to acquire Marner. The Predators also have three second-round picks in this year’s draft, so they can afford to give one to the Leafs. Juuse Saros will be the crucial piece of this deal, but the Leafs will likely require Saros to agree to a contract extension in order to not lose him after the 2024-25 season. With the media and fan attention, Toronto can be tough on goaltenders, so they would want to lock Saros out of fear he won’t want to stick around.

Adding Joakim Kemell to the deal would also be a big win for the Maple Leafs. The 2022 first-round pick has 54 points in 81 AHL games since arriving in North America. More importantly for the Leafs, he demonstrated the ability to elevate his game during the playoffs, with 21 points in 29 career playoff games.