Do the Maple Leafs Have to Trade Phil Kessel

Phil Kessel has been one of the consistently best players in the NHL.

In the past five seasons, only Alex Ovechkin, Steven Stamkos and Corey Perry have scored more goals.  That is pretty elite company.  Especially given that all three are playing on much better teams.

So will Toronto trade him?

I believe so.  In order to rebuild the system that have to part ways to build a stronger core.

And they have been entertaining discussions according to NHL.com.  According to the NHL, he has seven years left on his eight-year, $64 million contract that carries an NHL salary-cap charge of $8 million.

The Hockey Writers believe that he should be traded:

It’s pretty much a sure thing that the Leafs want a first round pick in the package they get for Kessel. It would be easier to accomplish that if they make a deal in the coming weeks to acquire a 2015 draft pick. Teams know what they could get at their position in the draft this year. If a team wants to win sooner rather than later and think they might be one or two pieces away from being a playoff contender, Kessel might be worth parting with that pick.

If the Leafs are patient, they might find that teams are not willing to part with their 2016 first round pick so easily. Why? It’s the factor of the unknown. If there’s a lesson to be learned in trading picks that are a year or two away, Toronto learned it in acquiring Kessel. They gave up two first round picks, as well as a second, for a player that they thought would get them into the playoffs almost single-handedly. Those two first-rounders ended up being a second overall pick (Tyler Seguin, 2010) and a ninth overall pick (Dougie Hamilton, 2011).

Image courtesy of mashleymorgan.