Maple Leafs trade Eric Fehr to the San Jose Sharks

It has been announced today that the Leafs have traded Eric Fehr to the San Jose Sharks.

#Leafs announce they've traded Eric Fehr to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for a seventh-round draft pick in the 2020 #NHLDraft. Toronto now holds eight picks in the 2020 NHL Draft.

— Dhiren Mahiban (@dcmahiban) February 20, 2018

Okay, that is not the most exciting return, but the real point of this deal is to kick along the cap space on a contract the Leafs took on last year at this time. They got Fehr as depth player insurance, and as part of the deal that sent Frank Corrado to the Penguins because Pittsburgh wanted rid of his inflated contract.

He broke his hand in his first ever game for the Leafs, and never played until this year where he lost the 4C job to Dominic Moore.

If the #Leafs were to trade Eric Fehr, whose contract is currently buried in the minors, it would further reduce their LTIR spending by $975K and as a result increase their accessible Salary Pool cap space to almost $6.5M ahead of Monday's trade deadline. https://t.co/F1L7HYhn4s

— CapFriendly (@CapFriendly) February 20, 2018

Because Fehr’s cap hit was so high, some of it counted, even though he’s been in the AHL most of the year. If you’ve forgotten about him, it’s understandable. He’s been playing in the Anaheim Ducks organization for the San Diego Gulls on a loan deal.

They’ll miss him, I’m sure, as he very quickly became their top goal scorer with 17 goals in 34 games played.

By playing so well in California — the Sharks AHL team is in the same division — he got himself another chance at some NHL playing time on a playoff team.

Dallas Eakins via text: “(Fehr) was excellent. He did not spend time here waiting. He invested his time and got better. We used him in all situations. He had a real positive effect and influence on his teammates. Can't say enough about him as a person. Sharks lucky to have him."

— Kevin Kurz (@KKurzNHL) February 20, 2018

The Leafs lose a contract, they now have 48 SPCs, and the oversized cap hit. Really, everyone wins here. You’d almost say it’s a Fehr deal.