The Leafs never actually had a shot at Josh Manson
For a few seasons now, the Leafs have been linked to defender Josh Manson and Leafs fans have been begging Kyle Dubas to trade for the big right handed defenseman. A big, mean, physical righty would have been a perfect add for the the Leafs, even considering the drop off in his play this season.
Many dreams were crushed in Leafs Nation on Monday when Manson was shipped to Colorado in exchange for a 2nd rounder and a defensive prospect. At that price, especially with half his contract being retained by the Ducks, there was some understandable frustration within the Leafs fanbase that Dubas didn't land their golden boy.
By the sounds of it, Dubas did try to acquire Manson. Talks between the Leafs and Ducks got far enough along that Manson, who had the Leafs on his 10 team no trade list, was asked if he would be willing to waive his NTC to come to Toronto. Manson said no.
It's no fault of Manson's and nothing against him. Toronto is a difficult market with a volatile fanbase. Just ask Phil Kessel, who was booed by Leafs fans in his first game after the birth of his child last week. It's completely understandable that Manson would rather play in a quieter market. Manson got his wish, and he's going to make the Colorado Avalanche a tougher team come playoff time.
For the Leafs, it's not such a bad thing. It's better to have players on the team who want nothing more than to be a Maple Leaf. At the very least, you want someone who is at least willing to come to Toronto. As far as I'm concerned, Manson not wanting to be a Leaf really makes missing out on trading for him a non issue. It's up to Dubas now to land a better option. One who wants to play in Toronto, but more importantly, one that wants to win in Toronto.
