That is a pretty good LW group... It obviously is not the high end of the center or right wing group, but if Ritchie is on our 4th line and Engvall is in the press box, we are doing pretty well.
Short of paying through the nose for a retained high end rental LW on a team that sells, I don't see what move can even be made to upgrade there.
And that kind of trade will almost certainly have nothing to do with Holl or Dermott. You are pigeon-holing our options that way when there could be a major market for either if picks are the expectation.
My gut feeling is the Leafs are looking for a team that will give them a late 2nd/early 3rd in 2022 + a very capable 6/7 defenseman who is practically at league minimum (or a mid-high 2nd straight up)... And I imagine it will be Holl that is moved before Dermott, considering Dermott is the one who is still playing in the lineup despite being a LHD on the right side.
The Leafs may include a prospect like Hollowell to sweeten the pot, or may need to find that 7th defenseman in a separate deal, but I don't imagine they deviate from that general request.
I'd agree with you that the Leafs aren't likely to be pursuing a LW at this time, but to be fair, it is a quite unspectacular LW group; who maybe lack the "purpose" that the Leafs would want given who they have at C and on the right side.
Bunting brings energy and a little bit of finish; but not a ton of size / puck controlling / cycling ability. Ritchie was obviously brought in with the vision of bringing size to the top 6, so far he hasn't really worked out with very inconsistent play. Mikheyev's been injured, and Kerfoot, when he's a LW, is kind of just there. The main value he serves is the ability to play C if somebody gets hurt. Obviously, if Ritchie can turn around his play and Mikheyev get healthy, there's a lot less to be conrend about.
I'd also agree with you that the target is likely a draft pick (considering the Leafs have so few this year and last), plus a defenceman who fits better in a 6-7 role... theoretically a Bogosian-replacement who makes like $800k... or potentially a young centre prospect who's waiver exempt.
That being said, I do believe it would be Dermott that they're thinking to move... if you look at the Leafs last year, Dermott was finding his way in and out of the lineup with Sandin -- one of the reasons for that is that they play similar games. The Leafs had to keep Dermott, knowing that he gives them some flexibility if Rielly walks, as you could theoretically assemble a left side of Muzzin, Dermott and Sandin; and go spend money on the right / elsewhere. With Rielly signed, Dermott is kind of back into no-mans land of not being good enough to make Rielly/Muzzin replacable, and the younger / more upside Rasmus Sandin.
With Holl, as long as you believe he can rebound from his 7 games of poor play, even with Liljegren's emergence, there's still a pretty ideal spot for him on the right side, whether it's alongside Sandin on a 3rd pair, back with Muzzin as a shutdown pair, or even with Rielly if the Leafs decide they want to go with 3 reasonably balanced pairs.
I had read an article that suggested the concept of Robert Bortuzzo in St. Louis... to me this might be an ideal fit especially considering St. Louis lost Vince Dunn in the XD... something like Bortuzzo @50% retained and a 3rd round pick for Dermott.
