Toronto Maple Leafs scratch Bobby McMann, Scott Laughton, Oliver Ekman-Larsson for trade protection

Mar 4, 2026 (4:02 PM)

Photo credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Chris Johnston and Elliotte Friedman report Bobby McMann, Scott Laughton, and Oliver Ekman-Larsson sit out vs New Jersey, so Leafs trade chatter just turned real.

If this is asset protection, Toronto is flashing three names at once with two days left before the Friday, March 6 trade deadline.

Bobby McMann is 29, undrafted, and a pending UFA with a $1.35M cap hit.

He has produced 19-13-32 in 60 games, the kind of middle-six scoring teams pay for at the deadline.

Scott Laughton is 31, drafted in 2012 (Round 1) by the Philadelphia Flyers, and he is also a pending UFA at $3.0M.

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Laughton's line is 8-4-12 in 43 games, plus he takes hard minutes on the penalty kill.

Oliver Ekman-Larsson is 34, drafted in 2009 (Round 1) by the Phoenix Coyotes, and he carries a $3.5M cap hit through 2027-28.

OEL has 8-27-35 in 61 games, and that is real puck-moving from the blue line.

Leafs fans have that familiar deadline dread right now, because this looks less like "rest" and more like goodbye.

McMann is the cleanest rental for a contender that needs cheap goals and a forecheck that actually finishes checks.

Laughton is the safer add for teams that want a third-line center who can slide to wing and survive playoff matchups.

Ekman-Larsson is trickier, but a team chasing offense from its second power-play unit could talk itself into the term.

Toronto also has leverage, because they can sell two expirings, keep the term guy, and still reshape the room.

But if all three sit tonight, interested teams should read it as availability, not a coincidence.

The Leafs enter Wednesday at 27-24-10, and the next game is going to feel like a roster audit between the pipes and at the blue line.

Previously on HockeyLatest

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MARS 4\|122 ANSWERS Toronto Maple Leafs scratch Bobby McMann, Scott Laughton, Oliver Ekman-Larsson for trade protection Should the Maple Leafs trade these players before the deadline?
Yes	112	91.8 %
No	10	8.2 %
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