Breaking: Leafs working to move Nick Ritchie
Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman had a story of interest for Leafs fans during the 32 Thoughts segment of the Hockey Night in Canada coverage on Saturday night, reporting that the Buds are working hard to move Nick Ritchie.
Per Friedman, Ritchie - who is currently with the AHL's Toronto Marlies - has drawn some attention from around the league, but some of the teams who are interested are try to get the Leafs to retain some salary, due to the extra year remaining on his deal. The Leafs would prefer not to for obvious reasons.
Ritchie carries a $2.5M cap hit both this season and next and does have a mean streak to him, which could be of intrigue to teams who are expected to challenge for a playoff spot but who may be lacking in that department.
The Orangeville, ON native had found himself a golden ticket to start the season, riding shotgun on the top line with Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. For one reason or another, Ritchie just couldn't capitalize and found himself rapidly falling down the depth chart.
There is a fit out there for Ritchie somewhere, especially since he was on pace to score 25 goals last season, had the season been a full 82 games.
