Dakota Joshua's name is floating around Maple Leafs trade chatter as Toronto looks to trim a crowded forward group.
Insider David Pagnotta dropped the report Sunday morning, saying the Maple Leafs have 14 forwards on the roster right now. Somebody has to go.
Pagnotta didn't name a certainty. But he said Joshua's name has "kind of" been out there the last couple of days, according to Leafs Morning Take.
David Pagnotta: Re Maple Leafs: You've got 14 forwards now, so somebody's gotta go, I don't know who it's gonna be; there was some talk of Dakota Joshua's name kind of out there in the last couple of days.
That's not nothing. When a beat insider starts floating a specific name, teams are usually further along than they let on.
Joshua carries a $3,250,000 cap hit, signed through this contract on Toronto's books. He put up 10 goals and 8 assists for 18 points across 55 games this past season.
His last 10 games weren't bad, either. Two goals, three assists, five points, a minus-1 rating over that stretch.
So why him? Toronto finished 32-36-14 for 78 points, ranked 28th overall, and closed the year on a seven-game losing streak.
Toronto's forward logjam forces a hard roster call
A team that bad on the standings sheet doesn't usually have the luxury of 14 NHL forwards fighting for spots. Something has to give, and it usually isn't the top six.
Here's the thing about trimming a bottom-six winger like Joshua. It clears a roster spot, sure, but it doesn't fix what actually broke down in Toronto this year.
Think of it like rearranging deck chairs on a boat that's already taking on water below deck. The Maple Leafs need structural change, not just subtraction.
Is moving Joshua actually addition by subtraction, or is it a front office solving the wrong problem? That's the fair question nobody's asking loud enough yet.
Joshua's game leans on physicality and net-front work more than pure scoring. That profile is replaceable around the league, which is exactly why his name keeps coming up.
Nothing here is finalized. Pagnotta stopped short of calling it a trade, a waiver move, or anything close to official.
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But once a name starts circulating publicly like this, it rarely goes quiet on its own. Toronto's front office now has a decision sitting in plain view heading into the summer.
Should the Maple Leafs move on from Dakota Joshua this offseason?
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