The Toronto Maple Leafs are facing a fork in the road of the 2025-26 season, and the path they choose dictates their plan for the trade deadline.

The campaign has been turbulent for the team as far as the play of individuals and the collective unit. While there have been positive stretches such as their 9-1-3 stretch after firing Marc Savard, there have also been extended moments of futility like the first two months of the regular season. It has resulted in the Leafs on the fringes of the playoffs and no guarantee they will make it, let alone win the Stanley Cup.

The Olympic break is fast approaching, and GM Brad Treliving has to quickly decide what his plan of attack is for the Leafs down the stretch. Their lack of a guaranteed playoff birth means being a buyer probably isn’t a feasible option, so it is either commit to selling off assets or stand pat.

Yesterday, we looked at the case for the Leafs becoming sellers. In the second of a two-part series, we explore the case for and against the Leafs doing nothing at the deadline.

The Leafs have nothing of significance at their disposal to spend assets on and won’t come close to matching the asking price to add the type of pieces that this team needs to improve. Being in this position is a culmination of being a buyer at the deadline for the better part of a decade and at some point, you simply run out of critical pieces to spend. Last season saw them surrender a big chunk of what they could spend, giving up significant prospects in Nikita Grebenkin and Fraser Minten while also surrendering first-round picks in 2026 and 2027 to get Scott Laugthon and Brandon Carlo.

If the Leafs want to buy, the only things that could be of interest to other teams are Easton Cowan, Ben Danford, and a 2027 second-round pick. It would be a massive mistake for Treliving to give up any of these assets, given that making the playoffs is far from a sure thing right now. Retaining these assets and banking on them being key contributors to the team in the near future would be a better option at this stage, especially with how much they could benefit from adding youth to the lineup.

That means the only avenue left for the Leafs to explore if they want to make improvements is to make a hockey trade, and that is easier said than done to pull off. There just aren’t enough teams out there that have the type of piece Treliving is looking for while wanting someone he would be willing to make available. It’s hard to envision that changing anytime soon because so many teams still believe they have a legitimate chance at reaching the playoffs.

But is this team even worth investing in to begin with? There has not been enough of a sustained run of success to give any indication that the 2025-26 Leafs can do serious damage in the playoffs, but they also have not played badly enough to push themselves into the Gavin McKenna sweepstakes. The Leafs are stuck in the mushy middle for better or worse, and those are usually the types of teams that aren’t too active at the deadline.

Treliving has to know that he is on the hot seat with the season not going the way he and upper management expected, so that means he probably wouldn’t want to start selling to begin with. He probably also knows that he can’t be a buyer either with the math not on their side right now in terms of their chances of making the playoffs. We have to accept the reality that there is a good chance that he chooses to ride it out and hopes the team as constructed,can figure it out on their own.

Although you can understand why Treliving may opt to leave the roster untouched, he really cannot afford to sit on his hands because of the situation the team is in. He should be doing everything in his power to put the Leafs in the best position he possibly can, whether that be competing for the playoffs or retooling on the fly to get better next season. Not picking a direction would be a disservice to the fans when the city is as apathetic towards the team as ever.

There is enough talent on this roster that they can theoretically be a decent squad when everything is clicking, and thus worth investing in. Why it hasn’t come together to this point is because of a multitude of reasons, ranging from adjusting to life without Mitch Marner, the mounting injuries, and a struggling power-play. With a record beyond regulation being 7-10, they are also dealing with a bit of bad luck, and there is a world where their prospects were more favourable if it were 10-7 instead. Add to the fact that the Olympic break comes at a great time to offer a reset, and it wouldn’t be impossible to see the Leafs go on a run down the stretch.

Making major additions is obviously out of the question, but they could easily get creative in addressing their needs while not surrendering major assets. They could target diamonds in the rough, young players who are seeking a fresh start, or someone who a team is desperate to move off in a hockey trade. These types of players probably won’t make a significant impact, but perhaps providing a different element is what the doctor ordered for this group.

On the flip side, there is no shame in waiving the white flag on the season and looking to restock the cupboard to set themselves up for next season and beyond. This year’s Leafs team is flawed and it’s hard to imagine that they have the horses to go on a serious run if they can reach the playoffs. Treliving has a ton of players that he could dangle that would fetch good returns, such as Laughton, Carlo, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, and Bobby McMann. He would certainly have a lot of work to do to get the Leafs back in contention immediately after the fire sale, but the assets gained would put him in a good position to do just that.

While it might be counterintuitive to waste away one of Matthews and Nylander’s prime years, it would be in their best interest to have that happen now rather than down the line when things are more dire. They are already in a transition phase of sorts, so a soft reset executed properly could be just what they need to extend their window of contention through the rest of the 2020s. So whether they add or subtract, it would be wise of Treliving to do something instead of nothing.

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