The Maple Leafs recently traded Timothy Liljegren to San Jose and got Matt Benning in return, but it seems they don’t plan to keep him.
Benning was mainly included in the deal as a way to balance salaries, not because Toronto wanted him for depth. He’s under contract until next season with a $1.25 million cap hit.
Though Benning has played seven games this season, averaging just over 13 minutes per game, his role hasn’t been significant. This isn’t unusual for him; throughout his nine-year NHL career covering 464 games, he’s had similar ice time. Currently, Toronto can afford to have both Benning and Philippe Myers as extra defensemen on their roster due to a large LTIR pool. But soon that will change when Connor Dewar and Jani Hakanpaa return from their AHL conditioning assignments .
Roster Moves Ahead:
Fans might wonder if the Maple Leafs are making the right choice by letting go of these players. To make room for Dewar and Hakanpaa, it’s likely they’ll need to remove Benning and Myers from the roster while staying within their salary limits. If Toronto wants another team to take Benning off their hands, they must act quickly before he ends up on waivers along with Myers.
With other teams aware of Toronto’s urgency, any trade value they get for Benning could be minimal at best. What do you think about these moves?
