17 Mar 2026 19:08:15
Looking at Toronto's two most prominent RFA's Matias Macelli and Nick Robertson. You don't want to have either walk with nothing in return, so you literally have to do a qualifying offer for both. Robertson would be $1,825,000 and if he wanted to stay he would request Arbitration. If he got a raise then he would still be in a range that would be tradeable in a package. If someone offered a bit more and he liked the destination and the length of the deal we would get a 3rd pick as compensation. If someone offered him between $2,400,000 to roughly $4,700,000 we would get a 2nd round pick back.

With Macelli, to do a qualifying offer we have to do a minimum of $4,100,000. Which if it was a low offer match and he didn't do arbitration would be a 2nd round pick. If a team offered him higher than $4,700,000 and up to $7,000,000 which the way salaries are going the $4.8-4.9 range is not inconceivable.

That would bring us a 1st and a 3rd round pick.

If the Macelli we are seeing is for real, then qualifying him is not a bad move if he wants to do arbitration and stay, and if he keeps performing strong until the end of the season and someone wants to pry him away, a 1st and a 3rd is not a bad way to lose him if we are rebuilding. So if they both were pried loose by other teams at the higher end for both players. We would then have in return a 1st, 2nd and 3rd round pick for 2027 which gives us 2 1st round picks, 3 2nds and a 3rd we didn't have.

Worse case scenario, they go to arbitration and if they don't perform we look at moving them in trade packages. But I think we do have to do qualifying offers or we get not a thing when they then have the right to become UFA's without the offer.

1.) 17 Mar 2026
17 Mar 2026 18:34:24
Nobody is offer sheeting either of those guys with that being the draft pick return. It would be lovely, but not all that realistic.

2.) 17 Mar 2026
17 Mar 2026 19:57:59
In this crazy league, never say never. Teams that have a lot of prospects and draft picks but don't want to give up prospects in a trade if they are already in the middle to just past the middle of their rebuilds might bite. Those are not huge salaries to take on board for a team on the rise that is looking for depth a 3rd and 4th liner. We, on the other hand, are hoping to hit the depths to a point if we are rebuilding.

At the same time, if we don't qualify them, we get nothing.
The other option is to trade them and their RFA rights to negotiation to another team prior to or during the June 25-June 30th qualifying deadline. It will come down to who is sitting at that GM's desk at that time.

3.) 17 Mar 2026
17 Mar 2026 20:48:34
Lmao…. No one is gonna make an offer to Macelli than will cost them a first and a third. He’s barely worth a third.

4.) 17 Mar 2026
17 Mar 2026 21:01:20
OK! Did I ever say that was what was going to happen? Geez I listed the 4 options that could happen. One, we let them go for nothing, Two, we do the Minimum Qualifying offer and see if someone offers slightly above and both players leave, in which case I said what the minimum Compensation would be coming back, and Three, if we do the minimum Qualifying offer and if someone is crazy enough in a week free agent market to offer high, what our Compensation would be.

Fourth, we Qualify and they both go to Arbitration and then we are at the mercy of the Arbitrator. If we are stuck with them we hope they find their mojo with different linemates etc. If not then we try the trade route with them. Option one would be completely stupid to not get a thing for them.

5.) 17 Mar 2026
17 Mar 2026 21:19:56
Maccelli can go for nothing. We pay him 4+M then we are stuck with him. Need to let him walk and start changing our identity. Keep Robertson and Cowan, move on from Maccelli and Domi. Need to get some players with some jam.

6.) 18 Mar 2026
17 Mar 2026 21:42:38
Who would you target on the free agent market, Clarky, with the $4.1 m from Macelli that would bring what you are looking for?

7.) 18 Mar 2026
17 Mar 2026 21:59:17
I think his point is that we need to qualify both players!

I agree.

And I think we all agree that we need something back.

So let’s protect that position.

8.) 18 Mar 2026
18 Mar 2026 00:21:56
Suffering for ever,

Maccelli and Robertson will be sent packing this summer in a package deal by our new GM as Treliving will be be fired after last regular season game.

9.) 18 Mar 2026
18 Mar 2026 12:41:52
How do you know they will be in a package deal together?

10.) 18 Mar 2026
18 Mar 2026 12:42:53
Plus if it is to be a package deal during the summer, then we legitimately have to offer them a qualifying offer to be able to trade them.

11.) 18 Mar 2026
18 Mar 2026 12:53:18
The difference of opinion on these two players is quite something.

Robertson has 2 goals in his last 19 games. When that was Maccelli, Domi, anyone else, many wanted them gone, but because it's Robertson, we need to keep him? I don't get it. I know he hustles, he works hard, but if he doesn't score, he doesn't bring much else but hustle. Jarnkrok hustles, rarely scores, and most want him traded for nothing.
Maccelli has more goals and points than Robertson. And let's face it, if Robertson started to heat up when the games meant nothing, some would be singing his praises and claiming he just needed the opportunity. With Maccelli it's, sure he heats up because the games mean nothing and he is playing for a contract.
Neither player is irreplaceable imo.

If they both go, so be it.
At the right price would I keep Maccelli, I probably would. For one thing, he didn't moan and groan when they sat him out all those games, and when he came back, he was a much better player and has been pretty consistent since. Robertson has moaned and groaned in the past. Asked for a trade when he wasn't put in the lineup. Has never lived up to the hype some have given him. He is finishing his 3rd season and not likely to crack 35 points in any of those seasons. How is he a guy we have to keep unless he was great defensively (he is not), or big and punishing hitter (he is not), or a physical deterrent/fighter (he is not).
The love for Robertson and complete hate for Maccelli makes absolutely no sense to me. I don't love or hate either.

12.) 18 Mar 2026
18 Mar 2026 14:18:43
Wow I thought this was a trade posting site not a forum to read short stories. A lot of back and forth for nothing here. FYI you can trade them without a qualifying offer as long it’s within the window of negotiations.

U r trading their signing rights like they did with Marner. Then it’s up to the team that traded for them to sign them within that window.

13.) 18 Mar 2026
18 Mar 2026 19:39:40
FYI I mentioned that about trading them with negotiation rights in the third post.

14.) 18 Mar 2026
18 Mar 2026 20:51:43
The Leafs, by the way, did not trade Marner's signing rights. They signed him first, then traded him. They did it as a favour to him and to Vegas, allowing him to sign for the 8 years whereas if Vegas had signed him it would have only been allowed to be 7 years, so it allowed Vegas to spread the amount over 8 years.

15.) 20 Mar 2026
20 Mar 2026 21:37:42
Yes you r right but I stopped reading after your first post didn’t get to your 3rd of 6th one.

16.) 21 Mar 2026
21 Mar 2026 19:32:27
Ahhh I see. But as you said we were just doing a lot of back and forth for nothing. Then you imparted your wisdom on the trading of their rights. That was already covered. Perhaps some of the educated posters don't mind the back and forth. Try reading everyone's posts. You never know, you just might appreciate some of the other posters' opinions.