The Toronto Maple Leafs still have one glaring job left this offseason: find another top-six forward. The bottom six has been upgraded, the blue line looks more mobile and better at moving the puck, and yet the forward group still needs one more real piece to round it out.
That’s why Jack Quinn has started to make sense in the rumor conversation.
According to David Pagnotta on DFO Rundown, Buffalo’s young winger has been circulating around the trade mill.
“[Jack Quinn] His name has been kind of making the rounds.”
Quinn, 24, checks a lot of boxes Toronto would want. He’s 6-foot-1, 185 pounds, and brings the kind of speed that can change the look of a forward group in a hurry. He also just posted a career year with the Sabres, scoring 20 goals in 2025-26 while adding 31 assists and 52 hits in 15:39 of ice time per night.
There’s also the contract angle. Quinn is in the final year of his deal and remains an RFA, which could make him a tricky fit for Buffalo with the cap rising. If the Sabres think a big raise is coming, moving him now could be the cleaner path.
For Toronto, though, this is exactly the sort of player worth chasing. If the goal is to add speed, scoring and youth, Quinn brings all three. He’s young enough to fit the future, productive enough to help right away, and fast enough to give the Leafs a different look in their top six.
The price, at least on paper, wouldn’t have to be outrageous. A 2027 first-rounder from Colorado could be part of the discussion, with players like William Villeneuve and Dakota Joshua also mentioned as possible pieces. That’s the kind of package that reflects both Quinn’s current value and the fact that he still needs a new deal.
And if Toronto wants to dream a little bigger, the fit is easy to picture. Quinn’s speed next to Gavin McKenna and Auston Matthews would give the Leafs a dangerous combination, with McKenna able to find him in stride and Quinn using that burst to create one-on-one chances.
There’s also the simple appeal of weakening a rival. The Atlantic has seen plenty of teams add big names, and Toronto could use one move that tilts things back in its favor.
Auston Matthews and company are close, but not quite all the way there. If John Chayka wants to push this team toward immediate contention, Jack Quinn looks like the kind of buy-low winger who can help get them there.
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