Some unexpected news popped up this weekend about the Maple Leafs. It was reported Saturday night that Patrick Marleau is looking to move out of Toronto as his family will be literally moving out of Toronto back to California. This set off a scramble to find a matching trade partner out west. All of this came on the heels of the Maple Leafs allegedly talking to teams about trading away Nikita Zaitsev too.

It’s a break from the other item at the top of the Leafs agenda, signing Mitch Marner to a new contract. The Leafs front office has not been talking much about what is going on. Marner’s camp seems to have near daily updates on his demands. There’s a few weeks to the start of the NHL Draft on Friday June 21. That’s lots of time to complete a deal.

ICYMI
Here’s what we talked about on the weekend.

Are the Maple Leafs trying to trade Marleau to the Kings? - Katya
Pierre LeBrun says they’ve talked about Patrick Marleau, so who do you want back, Dion Phaneuf or Ilya Kovalchuk?

Should the Maple Leafs really trade Zaitsev? - Katya
The first rule of asset management is don’t sell low.

Back to Excited Episode 64: Rumour Has It - Arvind and Fulemin
We discuss the rumours around the Leafs, with guest Jensine.

SBNation 2019 NHL Mock Draft: Picks 11 & 12 - Katya
Did someone finally take Vasili Podkolzin?

Other News

The Growlers will continue their Kelly Cup Final series this week back in Newfoundland. The big news over the weekend was about the trophy itself, the Kelly Cup. Some careful parsing of the words in this story shows there is a dispute over whether or not the trophy must be returned, or whether a team can choose to keep it.

The Kelly Cup controversy is the summer’s funniest story - Mile High Hockey
The ECHL’s mysterious trophy debacle with Colorado almost seems too wild to be true.

Chicago Wolves take Game 1 of AHL’s Calder Cup Final against Charlotte - Knights On Ice
In a game that went to overtime, the Wolves fended off the Charlotte Checkers thanks to Stefan Matteau and Chicago’s defense.

NHL Scouting Combine News and Notes - Die By The Blade
With all of the league in one place, a lot of interesting rumors and news can come out of this week to set up the offseason.

Should the Flyers offer sheet Matthew Tkachuk? - Broad Street Hockey
Proposing a bit more thievery.

Kessel could be the finisher Montreal needs - Eyes On The Prize
Phil Kessel is likely on the move, can Montreal steal him from Pittsburgh at his lowest value?

From The Branches