After abysmal seasons where the Toronto Maple Leafs failed to make it out of the first round once again and the New York Islanders barely sniffed the playoffs, it appears the two are due for a major overhaul, but key names have been thrown around it has to make sense for both teams.
The name Mitch Marner has been tossed out like a dirty Kleenex ever since the Maple Leafs failed to get past the Boston Bruins in seven, however, a lesser-known commodity like Calle Jarnkrok could be the odd man out and be an even more valuable trade chip this summer. On the Island, it would be conceivable to believe that one if not all of Anders Lee, Adam Pelech, Jean-Gabriel Pageau & Ryan Pulock might be donning a new sweater come training camp in the early fall, but if the two are working on something together, will the Maple Leafs be forced to pony up a prospect?
When you're talking about the New York Islanders, consider that Lou Lamoriello runs the show as President of hockey operations for the franchise and with his history and connection to the Maple Leafs, there may be bad blood there or as an eighty-one-year-old hockey lifer, it's possible that he's moved past it and it could be business as usual.
The fact of the matter is that both franchises have continued to underperform despite the fact they seem to have the proper player personnel in place, at least on paper and in theory. It can be said that Toronto requires to move one of the core four for them to move forward and that the Islanders could benefit from a different look, it will only happen if both teams think it makes sense not only today but moving forward into the future.
