Max Domi Not Present for Practice, Increasing Speculation That a Trade is Near for Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs have won 4 straight games coming out of the 4 Nations Face-Off break, and with the trade deadline less than a week away, trade speculation has been increasing steadily.

On Saturday, the Leafs took to the ice for practice in Pittsburgh ahead of Sunday afternoon's matinee game against the Penguins. The kicker was that Max Domi, whose name has been present in some of the recent trade speculation, was absent from Saturday's practice.

Teams often begin to hold players out of practices and games at this point of the year to protect them from potential injury as the trade deadline nears. This could very well be one of those scenarios, given the fact that we know that the Leafs are looking to swing big on a difference-maker.

If the Maple Leafs hope to make a significant splash ahead of the March 7th trade deadline, they'll need the cap space to do so. Domi's $3.75M could be the difference between acquiring a legitimate game-changer and just fringe pieces.

It's worth noting that Scott Laughton has been connected to the Leafs to quite some time, and posted a cryptic message on his social media last night, suggesting that it would be his last day with the Flyers. Could a trade be nearing completion? It's certainly possible.

There is a chance that Domi's absence is maintenance related, but we won't know until after practice when head coach Craig Berube speaks with the media.