NHL Rumors: Maple Leafs Trade Inching Closer

The Toronto Maple Leafs continue to be one of the hottest teams in hockey and are looking to make some adjustments to their roster. Rumor has the team heavily discussing trades that are including right-handed defenseman Justin Holl.

The 29-year-old defender has this season and next on his current deal, paying him $2 million. 2021-22 has been a struggle so far for the Minnesota native as he's found himself healthy scratched on numerous occasion and his ice-time decreased from last year. Holl has recently played on the Maple Leafs second pair with Jake Muzzin and quite frankly hasn't been good enough.

It got so bad earlier in the season several of Holl's teammates were seen yelling at him on the ice and on the bench. The Maple Leafs have Timothy Liljegren who has leap frogged Holl on the organizational depth chart and the team is now looking to move on from the veteran defenseman.

this sportsnet edit of auston matthews slowly losing his mind at justin holl is a true work of art pic.twitter.com/rXnm1yBpTQ
— mitch marney (@marnylandersen) October 28, 2021

Hockey insider Frank Seravalli has Holl ranked #4 on his trade list for December and had this to say about a potential move:

Goaltender Petr Mrazek is inching closer to a return to the Maple Leafs’ lineup, having recently returned to practice with the team. That means the Leafs will need to clear some cap space in order to activate Mrazek off LTIR. Kyle Clifford is one easy transaction. But the Leafs will need to shed more than that. There are other ways, including waiving Wayne Simmonds or trading Nick Ritchie. Since Timothy Liljegren has played himself into an everyday role, the Leafs have had interest in both Holl and Travis Dermott, but Holl is older and earns more – in a role that’s not commensurate with his pay.

The Maple Leafs are going to have no choice but to make a move and waiving Wayne Simmonds certainly won't be the one. Expect to see Holl traded and sometime before the Holiday roster freeze.