Two Canadian teams could swap disgruntled forwards in trade, analyst suggests

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Liam McCormick
August 27, 2024 (8:27 PM)

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The Calgary Flames and Toronto Maple Leafs are both finding themselves with a young and disgruntled player before training camp, so they could make ideal trading partners.

Kevin Papetti of the Athletic suggested on social media that the Flames and Leafs could swap Nick Robertson and Jakob Pelletier in a one-for-one deal.

Both players are 5'9» forwards that were drafted in 2019 by their respective teams, with Pelletier going late in the first round and Robertson midway through the second round. Robertson and Pelletier both sustained injuries in seasons when they were expected to break out, and it's resulted in stunted development and a lack of playing time bouncing between the AHL and NHL.

Recently, Chris Johnston reported that Nick Robertson has no intention of signing in Toronto after a lack of opportunity in the past. In March, Jakob Pelletier expressed some frustration about the lack of playing time in his comments to the media. At the moment, both players are unsigned restricted free agents.

Last season, Nick Robertson scored 14 goals and 27 points in 56 games on the Leafs only with only third and fourth line minutes. Jakob Pelletier has only played 37 career NHL games with 4 goals, but has excelled at the AHL level.

If both teams are amenable with trading with each other, swapping similar prospects in an identical position seems like a fair swap for both teams. It's interesting that Nick Robertson seems to be the player with far more promise in the NHL, and if the Flames jump on this idea for a deal, they could come out as big winners.

Source for Nick Robertson Stats: PuckPedia - Nick Robertson

Source for Jakob Pelletier Stats: PuckPedia - Jakob Pelletier