The Toronto Maple Leafs were on the opposite side of this coin one year ago.
Mitch Marner didn’t want to return to Toronto, and so they negotiated a sign-and-trade to send him to the Vegas Golden Knights.
This time, on Friday, the Leafs were the beneficiary of a talented, pending free agent who didn’t want to stay where he was.
Darren Raddysh was ready to leave the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Maple Leafs stepped in, sending a fifth-round pick to the Bolts to get Raddysh, and on an eight-year contract, too.
Yogi Berra once used the phrase, “Deja vu all over again.” This is like that, except flipped 180 degrees.
The Maple Leafs lived one side of this reality last summer. And now they’re living the other side.
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The Mitch Marner fallout
The thing is, the Marner outcome definitely hurt the Maple Leafs. They clearly missed his all-around game in the 2025-26 season.
The Golden Knights, on the flip side, went to the Stanley Cup Final before falling to the Carolina Hurricanes.
Marner clearly was highly valuable, and Toronto could do nothing but miss him.
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Now, they’re trying to reverse the vibes. Raddysh is coming off a 70-point season, by far the best of his career, but he certainly seems to be a long-term answer on the blue line.
Will acquiring Raddysh have the same effect on the Maple Leafs as getting Marner did for the Golden Knights? It’ll certainly be a notable impact.
The Maple Leafs definitely wouldn’t mind a trip to the Stanley Cup Final. Maybe they’ve spun things back around in their favor with this Raddysh trade.