The Maple Leafs started Wednesday by thinning out the blue line, placing Cole McWard and Dakota Mermis on waivers as the roster picture gets tighter with the season just days away.
Toronto was one of several NHL teams making moves, but the Leafs’ focus is clear: sort out the defense and get the group down to a workable regular-season lineup. With roster decisions due in five days, the pressure is on to settle the final pieces fast.
Mermis, 32, played 11 games for Toronto last season and scored one goal. McWard, 25, joined the organization as a free-agent signing this summer after spending last season with the New York Islanders, where he appeared in three games and finished with no points.
For Mermis, the waiver route is familiar. Toronto waived him last year, Utah claimed him, he was waived again after one game there, and then the Maple Leafs brought him back shortly afterward. He also spent time with the Marlies last season and helped them win a Calder Cup.
The Leafs are still sorting through the rest of the defense, and the names already in line paint a clearer picture. Morgan Rielly, Darren Raddysh, Jake McCabe, Chris Tanev and Oliver Ekman-Larsson look set, with one spot left among Troy Stecher, Emil Andrae and Nick Blankenburg. There’s also the possibility of eight defenders making the roster, which would turn that last depth job into a real battle.
Philippe Myers does not appear likely to stay. Blankenburg may have the inside track thanks to his NHL experience, his puck-moving ability and the fact that he stood out as Toronto’s best defender in its first preseason game.
Ben Danford is another option, though the source points to a full AHL season as the better path for him to get his professional footing. Noah Chadwick and Vinny Borgesi are also in the mix as rookies, but neither has drawn the same level of attention as Danford.
For now, Mermis and McWard are the first two names out as Toronto continues trimming the list ahead of opening night.
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For the Leafs, it is the kind of depth situation worth monitoring even without any immediate move attached to it. Grundstrm already knows the organization and has built a resume as a usable bottom-six option, which makes him the sort of player that can linger on the radar whenever clubs start sorting out the edges of their lineups. [Read more 🡒]