Maple Leafs send Martin Marincin to the Marlies

Defenceman Martin Marincin has been loaned to the @TorontoMarlies (AHL). #LeafsForever

— Leafs PR (@LeafsPR) November 29, 2019

Today, the Maple Leafs have announced they have loaned Martin Marincin to the Marlies. The Leafs play the Buffalo Sabres today in Buffalo at 4 p.m., while the Marlies are down the road in Rochester to face the Amerks at 7 p.m.

Note: I have no actual idea where Rochester is and if it is, in fact, down the road from Buffalo.

Marincin has barely played for the Leafs this year, starting out with some extremely low minutes in early games, and then giving way entirely once Rasmus Sandin was sent back to the AHL, and Justin Holl gained ascendance. Marincin has played one game in the month of November, and it was 27 days ago.

He was waived on November 8, and cleared, but was never sent down as Mitch Marner’s injury opened up millions of cap space. Marincin’s waiver exemption will expire once he is on an NHL roster for 30 days, and the existing three weeks since he was waived is cumulative with any time spent if and when he is called up again.

The Marlies are about to play their first three games in three days of the season, and it involves some travel as well. They come home for two weekend afternoon starts on Saturday and Sunday, so there is very little down time between tonight’s evening game and tomorrow’s 1:30 p.m. start.

However, the Marlies also called up some reinforcements from the Newfoundland Growlers in the past few days, and they have added both Mac Hollowell and Joey Duszak back on defence. With Marincin on top of that, the team has 11 defenders, all healthy as far as we know.

The Leafs will be coming home tomorrow too, to play the Sabres again, and they can add any extra defender they might like, since the Marlies will be handy, so there’s no problem for the team to be travelling with only the six on the playing roster.

With Mitch Marner out of action, the cap space is open to add any player to have a look at them, so if they wanted Sheldon Keefe to see Sandin in the NHL, now is the time. But it’s likely the entire point of this operation is to keep Marincin in playing shape.