Confirmed Trade: [SJS/TOR] Timothy Liljegren for 2025 SJS 3rd round pick, 2026 SJS 6th round pick, Matt Benning

[rojac]

LEafs can bury every cent of his salary in the minors. SJS just dumping a salary the Leafs have no problem paying. I would be very surprised if Benning sees a second of ice time in a arena in Toronto not named the Coca-Cola Coliseum.

His salary is 1.25M. The maximum buriable is $1.15M. If they send him to the minors, that will leave a cap hit of 100K.

 

[3074326]

Wow. 2 picks and a player?

That isssssssss... generous.

It’s not when you see what the picks and player are

 

[LeonDraisaitl]

I like it for both teams. Toronto isn’t in a position to wait until he figures it out but San Jose is

 

[RoadWarrior]

Ultimately for the Leafs, this was a guy sitting in the press box eating up cap space. They didnt get much for him, but it might give them some options at the trade deadline they otherwise wouldn't have had.

For the Sharks - this is an easy win.

They were probably sitting him in the press box to keep him healthy anticipating a trade. At the end of the day if it’s an injured Haakinpaa + Timmins over Liljegren then it’s not a great move. Timmins doesn’t have the same upside imo and is prone to taking dumb penalties. Nobody knows if Haakinpaa can even skate anymore. Even Benoit has shown some chinks in his game this season. I wouldn’t be playing him over Liljegren right now either.

There’s a reason why Liljegren is making $2M more AAV than any of those guys because he’s actually a better player.

 

[Bourne Endeavor]

Should have traded him way sooner or given him the chance. Always showed he had the ability to be a top guy to me.

... when? Seriously, when? Even on his best day, Liljegren could pass for an okay #4. That isn't to say he's a bad player. He's just widely inconsistent and it isn't like Toronto hasn't given him chances.

As for the trade itself. I think it's fine. The Leafs give up a little extra but Benning is a buriable deal. 350k or whatever is far better than 3M

 

[Paulinbc]

It’s not when you see what the picks and player are

no no, I saw, it's at the top of the page.

 

[RoadWarrior]

... when? Seriously, when? Even on his best day, Liljegren could pass for an okay #4. That isn't to say he's a bad player. He's just widely inconsistent and it isn't like Toronto hasn't given him chances.

As for the trade itself. I think it's fine. The Leafs give up a little extra but Benning is a buriable deal. 350k or whatever is far better than 3M

It was a salary dump. You typically don’t win those trades.

 

[The Macho King]

Sharks get a young NHLer with some upside for picks that wouldn't contribute for a long time (if ever). Solid deal for a rebuilding club.

Seems fine for Toronto too. That third is basically a second.

 

[Community]

It's good for Toronto from the sense that they don't have 3m wasting away in the pressbox and can now integrate the guys off LTIR. Therefore, overall it'll make us a better team even though the player swap is a downgrade.

However, I honestly thought Berube's system would be a great for Liljegren and help him iron out some of the mistakes he is prone to. I thought he could easily be a #4 for us and suddenly our defense looks think again with four top 4 dmen, but none of our 3rd pairing looking like quality NHLers so far this year.

Guess we'll just be trying different pairings for a while and likely shopping for a 2nd pair dman at the deadline.

 

[WarriorofTime]

That third is basically a second.

It's the earlier of Edmonton or Colorado's 3rd.

 

[Torontonian]

Probably a fair deal for both sides, Sharks get to see if theres something more there and Toronto gets some picks and a player back for someone the coach didn't like and didn't play..

Biggest problem with Lillypad is he was average in almost all aspects of the game, didn't really excel at anything.

 

[coooldude]

Probably a fair deal for both sides, Sharks get to see if theres something more there and Toronto gets some picks and a player back for someone the coach didn't like and didn't play..

Biggest problem with Lillypad is he was average in almost all aspects of the game, didn't really excel at anything.

Average defenseman??? Sign us the f*** up!

 

[Bizz]

Matt f***ing Benning is gone. Hallelujah. 2nd worst defenseman in Sharks history, and there have been some horrible ones.

Good luck with his constant f*** ups, Toronto. You're gonna need it.

 

[The Marquis]

The Sharks just got the same.

 

[ClydeLee]

Some leafs fans talked about great young d and considered him untouchable in discussions about like potential Hagel trades.

 

[EXTRAS]

25 and sitting on the bench. Good return.

 

[budzz]

Based on his skillset, he was used incorrectly. He needs to be in the #1-2D slot with #1PP time and O-zone starts. Trying to covert him to a 2-way 5-6 dman isn't gonna work. He needs Rielly's spot to thrive. Now that we have OEL, kinda no chance he will get PP time or Ozone starts.

I liked Lilly but the guy couldn't win a board battle with a chainsaw and a machete. Exposed regularly on any zone pressure and got caved in sheltered minutes. Terrible puck handling giveaways... in tense moments he has the "yips" with the puck. And you want to promote him to top pair against top competition? Say all you want about coaches he's had, but they are surrounded by intelligent voices all day too. They saw what everyone else did. If he can't handle being "converted to a 2-way 5-6 dman" to earn a spot then he sure as heck can't handle the "#1-2D slot with #1PP time".

Hope the best for Lilly he'll finally get minutes and may prove us doubters fools.

 

[WSS11]

Matt f***ing Benning is gone. Hallelujah. 2nd worst defenseman in Sharks history, and there have been some horrible ones.

Good luck with his constant f*** ups, Toronto. You're gonna need it.

Is Semenov #1?

 

[Cogburn]

If this was even last season, I think this trade would have broke HFB.

Sharks could have done a lot worse than Liljegren, for basically the same price as Maatta.

 

[Shocker]

Is Semenov #1?

Semen, hehe.

 

[AuraSphere]

Matt f***ing Benning is gone. Hallelujah. 2nd worst defenseman in Sharks history, and there have been some horrible ones.

Good luck with his constant f*** ups, Toronto. You're gonna need it.

I don't think he's ever going to be playing tbh

 

[Bizz]

Is Semenov #1?

I would say Kent Huskins but we all know the correct answer is Ehrhoff.

 

[Gilmour1996]

Matt f***ing Benning is gone. Hallelujah. 2nd worst defenseman in Sharks history, and there have been some horrible ones.

Good luck with his constant f*** ups, Toronto. You're gonna need it.

He'll never see the ice once in a Leaf uniform, unless the whole RD on the Leafs and Marlies get injured at the same time.