The Toronto Maple Leafs are in its Stanley Cup window and a trade pitch has them acquiring a superstar to bolster its roster.
The website PuckPedia‘s PuckGM tool lets users create their own trades. One user proposed a deal that would see the Maple Leafs acquiring Evgeni Malkin from the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Maple Leafs acquire:
Evgeni Malkin ($1.6 million retained)
Penguins acquire:
Nick Robertson
Topi Niemela
2025 second-round pick (Florida’s)
2025 third-round pick (Edmonton’s)
2026 third-round pick
The proposed deal would be a blockbuster as the Maple Leafs would acquire a future Hall of Famer for two young NHL players and three draft picks.
Malkin is in the third year of a four-year $24.4 million deal. The Russian has been a key part of the Penguins dynasty that won Stanley Cups in 2009, 2016, and 2017. Malkin is a seven-time NHL All-Star and would be a top-six forward for the Maple Leafs to add more offense. In his career, Malkin has skated in 1159 games recording 502 goals and 810 assists for 1312 points.
Malkin would also give the Maple Leafs some insurance should Mitch Marner and John Tavares leave in free agency this summer.
In return, the Maple Leafs would deal three draft picks and two players. Robertson and Niemela were both drafted in 2020 when Kyle Dubas was the GM of the Maple Leafs, who is now the GM of the Penguins.
Robertson could help replace Malkin on offense and add more youth to the lineup. Niemela, meanwhile, can help fix the Penguins blue line which has been an issue all season long.
Malkin Wants to Remain a Penguin
Malkin has spent this entire NHL career with the Penguins.
The Russian was selected second overall in the 2004 NHL draft by Pittsburgh. He signed a four-year extension in 2022 as he hit the open market.
Malkin was the subject of trade rumors last season, but he made it clear he wanted to remain in Pittsburgh, despite the team not being a playoff contender.
“Of course. I signed (a) four-year contract. After this year, I have two more years,” Malkin said back in March. “I want to stay here, you know? If I wanted to change teams, I probably would have changed two years ago. Again, this is my home, second home, you know? Any situation, I’m most happy here. I’ve had injuries. Now, it’s a tough situation. I want to be here.”
Pittsburgh has missed the playoffs in back-to-back years. The Penguins are also off to a disappointing 5-7-2 start and second last in the Metropolitan division.
Robertson Likely to be Traded by Maple Leafs
Robertson requested a trade this offseason but he ended up signing a one-year deal this offseason.
However, Robertson has been a healthy scratch at times and his name has now come up in trade talks.
“Up front, Calle Jarnkork, currently on LTIR, generated some trade interest early on in the season and pre-season, while Nick Robertson is still on the trade block and available if Treliving secures the right return. The Maple Leafs appear to have options, but what direction management takes remains to be seen,” The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta wrote.
Robertson has skated in 99 career games recording 18 goals and 17 assists for 35 points in his NHL career.
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