NHL Insider Shares Interesting Report on the Maple Leafs and Newly-Acquired Matt Benning

After being acquired by the Maple Leafs in the Timothy Liljegren trade recently, 30-year-old defenseman Matt Benning has done his best to maintain a level head about his situation, despite appearing to he the odd man out on the Leafs' depth chart.

It was recently reported by multiple sources that the Leafs were attempting to flip Benning to another team for another asset after acquiring him from the San Jose Sharks. However, that has proven difficult for one specific reason.

During a segment of Daily Faceoff Live, NHL Insider Frank Seravalli revealed that Benning having an extra year on his deal at $1.25M has given interested teams pause about acquiring him. He also acknowledged that the Leafs, being up against the cap and with a full 23-man roster, need to do something soon to alleviate their roster crunch. As a result, a trip to the waiver wire may be in Benning's immediate future.

Obviously, this is not ideal for Benning, who was originally looking forward to the opportunity to come to Toronto and help the team in any way that he can. Unfortunately, at the moment, it appears as though the only way he can help the team is if they move him or waive him.

As a right-shot defenseman, you'd have thought that Bennings would be a hot commodity among teams looking to bolster the lower end of their right side on D. However, with the salary cap world being what it is, teams who are looking to add depth don't have a lot of room for a guy making more than the league minimum -- especially if he's best suited as a 7th defenseman.