Timothy Liljegren Gives Honest Reaction to the Maple Leafs Trading Him to Sharks
Timothy Liljegren has revealed his view on why things didn't work out with the Maple Leafs during his first media session with the San Jose Sharks.
Wednesday evening, the Leafs cleared some cap space by trading Liljegren to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for 2025 third-round pick, 2026 sixth-round pick and depth defenseman Matt Benning.
Liljegren had been a scratch for 9 of the Leafs' first 10 games and found himself at the bottom of the depth chart. The trade was necessary for the Leafs with Jani Hakanpaa and Connor Dewar expected to return very soon, as they were activated from LTIR on Friday and assigned to the Toronto Marlies on a conditioning loan.
Following the trade, Liljegren took to Instagram to thank the Leafs and the city of Toronto for making his time there special, and yesterday, he took part in a media availability for the San Jose Sharks where he was asked what went wrong in Toronto and amitted he wasn't playing his best hockey.
A first-round pick in the 2017 draft, Liljegren was expected to be part of the future of the Leafs' blueline, along with Rasmus Sandin and Travis Dermott, but unfortunately, their development stalled and all were traded for picks and/or veteran defensemen.
From the onset of training camp, it appeared that Liljegren's days in Toronto were numbered, even though he signed a two-year extension in June that carries a $3M cap hit. He never really fit the mold of the big and physical defenseman that both Craig Berube and Brad Treliving covet.
In 197 games for the Leafs, Liljegren tallied 14 goals and 65 points during the regular season, but often found himself in the press box during the playoffs where he skated in just 13 games. Moving to a rebuilding Sharks team, Liljegren will get the opportunity he has longed for and will look to prove to the Leafs that he is capable of playing a more significant role on the blueline.
| POLL | ||
NOVEMBRE 1 | 2207 ANSWERS Timothy Liljegren Gives Honest Reaction to the Maple Leafs Trading Him to Sharks Will the Leafs regret trading Liljegren? | ||
| Yes | 569 | 25.8 % |
| No | 1320 | 59.8 % |
| We'll see in a couple years | 318 | 14.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
