Former Maple Leafs forward Nicolas Aube-Kubel is heading to the KHL after signing a one-year deal with Dinamo Minsk on Aug. 16, a move that comes just four years after he won the Stanley Cup with Colorado.
Aube-Kubel, 30, was unable to land an NHL contract this summer after a stretch that has seen his role shrink dramatically. He appeared in just six games for the Minnesota Wild in 2025-26, picking up two points, and has played only 28 combined games over the last two seasons.
The veteran winger has bounced around quite a bit during his career, spending time with Philadelphia, Washington, Colorado, Buffalo, Toronto, Minnesota and the New York Rangers. In 310 career games, he has 82 points, and his resume still includes that Stanley Cup run with the Avalanche in 2021-22.
Toronto’s stint with Aube-Kubel was brief. The Maple Leafs brought him in only weeks after he lifted the Cup, hoping for a hard-nosed, energetic bottom-six forward, but he managed just six games before being placed on waivers and claimed by the Washington Capitals.
He was waived in favor of Wayne Simmonds, who was recalled the same day, and Toronto may have valued Simmonds’ veteran presence and physical style more at the time.
Aube-Kubel found a steadier landing spot in Washington, where he put up 16 points in 60 games during 2023-24. He later left in free agency for Buffalo, but that stay didn’t last long either. The Sabres traded him on March 7, 2025 to the New York Rangers for Erik Brannstrom, and he then signed with Minnesota last summer.
He has never been a star, but he has consistently offered a physical presence in the bottom six and still carries the distinction of being a Stanley Cup winner.
For plenty of fans, though, he’ll always be tied to one unforgettable moment: falling while hoisting the Cup, which led to repairs after the bottom was dented.
The KHL move doesn’t necessarily slam the door on an NHL return, but it does underline how far his career has shifted. Aube-Kubel went from the highest point in hockey in 2022 to chasing depth opportunities, and now he’s taking his game overseas.
In Other News...
Canadiens Goalie Battle Is Putting Serious Pressure On One Familiar Name
The Canadiens goaltending picture is starting to take shape, and for the Maple Leafs it is one more reminder of how quickly the margins can shift in a division where every roster decision gets magnified. Montreal appears to be leaning toward Jakub Dobes as its starter with Jacob Fowler behind him, a setup that leaves Sam Montembeault in a precarious spot because of waiver concerns, and it is the kind of internal squeeze Toronto knows well when it comes to balancing talent, timing and roster flexibility.
For the Leafs, the bigger roster conversation is still centered on Morgan Rielly, whose game is being reassessed as the team looks for ways to keep his offense in play without asking him to carry the same defensive burden. The next phase could determine whether he settles into a different sort of role, one that better fits the roster around him, or whether Toronto eventually has to make an even tougher call if that adjustment does not produce the kind of fit the club wants. [Read more 🡒]
Morgan Rielly Trade Talk Just Got A Crucial New Measuring Stick
The veteran defense market is getting a useful reference point in Detroit, where Justin Faulks situation has become one to watch. The Red Wings brought him in at last years trade deadline, but with turnover on the roster and younger players like Axel Sandin-Pellikka pushing into the picture, his place in the long-term plan is less certain than it once looked.
For the Maple Leafs, that matters because Toronto has been monitoring Faulks market as a way to gauge what a veteran blue-liner with a meaningful cap hit can bring back. Morgan Rielly sits in a different category entirely, with four years left on his deal and a no-movement clause, so any conversation around him is more complicated than a simple like-for-like comparison. Still, if Faulk draws real interest, it could sharpen the Leafs view of just how difficult it would be to move a defenseman on Riellys terms. [Read more 🡒]
Maple Leafs May Need To Rethink 3 Big Training Camp Assumptions
Training camp has a way of hardening opinions before anyone has actually seen the lineup in motion, and the Maple Leafs are already carrying a few assumptions into September. John Tavares is often discussed as if his game has slipped badly with age, while Gavin McKenna is being treated like a player who has to be launched straight onto the top line, and Easton Cowan is still mostly viewed through the lens of a winger rather than anything else.
A closer look suggests Toronto may want to slow down on all three judgments. NHL tracking data points to Tavares being less cumbersome than the public narrative says, McKenna could have more room to grow into a role instead of being rushed into the spotlight, and Cowan might be worth a look down the middle if the Leafs want to explore different options. None of that settles the camp questions, but it does make the early roster debates a little more interesting than the usual guesswork. [Read more 🡒]