Young Leaf demoted, may have played his last game with the organization
Ahead of tonight's game against the Metropolitan Division leading New York Rangers, the Toronto Maple Leafs have announced a rather important move as they have activated forward Calle Jarnkrok from the IR. In a subsequent move, the Maple Leafs have demoted forward Nicholas Robertson to the Toronto Marlies, perhaps spelling the end of his tenure with the organization.
Jarnkrok has been sidelined since the end of January with a broken knuckle that he sustained in practice. He had struggled throughout the season with just 10 goals and 19 points through 46 games after setting career-highs the previous year with 20 goals and 39 points in 73 games for the Leafs.
Before succumbing to the injury and lengthy absence, he had scored just 2 goals in his previous 16 games, including a 9-game point-less drought he will look to snap tonight. With the top-6 clicking and firmly locked in, look for Jarnkrok to take the right-wing spot on John Tavares' line.
On the other side of the spectrum we have Robertson, who always seems to be the one catching the short end of the stick. He had a decent stint with the big club as he suited up for 41 games and tallied 8 goals and 19 points along the way. It was his first consistent run with the Leafs since being drafted in the 2nd round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft, having played just 31 games in parts of 3 seasons between 2019-20 and 2022-23.
With trade rumours swirling and the deadline quickly approaching, look for Brad Treliving to swing for the fences for some of the big-name defensemen still remaining on the market. They have been hesitant on moving their 2024 first round pick but Robertson's name has popped up several times and this could likely spell the end of a rocky tenure with the organization that was marred with injuries. Thankfully, he has been able to stay healthy finally this season, so that's a positive.
| POLL | ||
MARS 3 | 777 ANSWERS Young Leaf demoted, may have played his last game with the organization Has Nick Robertson played his last game as a member of the Maple Leafs? | ||
| Yes | 426 | 54.8 % |
| No | 351 | 45.2 % |
| List of polls | ||
