Toronto Maple Leafs Surprisingly Place Recently Acquired Player On Waivers

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Tom Banks
November 11, 2024 (2:21 PM)

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After just being acquired in the deal to send Timothy Liljegren to San Jose, the Toronto Maple Leafs have now officially waived veteran Matt Benning.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have been aggressive early in the season, with GM Brad Treliving clearly interested in making moves to improve this team, and last week they did just that by moving Timothy Liljegren to the San Jose Sharks. In return the team got two draft picks and veteran Matt Benning, but it wasn't long after the deal that it was rumoured the team could move on from the veteran blue liner.

While Treliving and the Maple Leafs didn't end up flipping him as that report initially suggested, the team have now made a move with Benning, officially placing him on waivers on Monday afternoon.

The 30-year old has not had much success with the Sharks in recent years, but given that he has played in 464 NHL games over his career, he could become a solid, cheap option for a contender out there looking at veteran depth.

Given that Jani Hakanpaa has returned for the Toronto Maple Leafs and will serve as depth at the NHL level, it made sense for the team to move on from Benning, and if he somehow passes through waivers, he'll be gladly accepted in the AHL as a way to serve as further depth.

In 7 games with the Sharks this season, Benning had 0 points and a -5 differential before being used to acquire the younger Liljegren, so it's unclear how much he can impact winning at the NHL level right now, but don't be surprised to see several teams looking to secure his services over the next 24 hours.