It feels like we’ve hit this talking point more than once in the past two months, but the Toronto Maple Leafs‘ next three games have never had higher stakes relative to the rest of the season. With captain Auston Matthews set to re-join the team with a gold medal under his belt and the rest of the team approaching the turn of the calendar like the start of the new season, the Maple Leafs will immediately be faced with three divisional matchups in a row with the trade deadline looming.

Several reports have come out that the Maple Leafs’ front office is going to give their team one more shot to make up some ground before the deadline arrives and will tailor their plans on deadline day accordingly. With games against the division-leading Tampa Bay Lightning, the Florida Panthers, who sit two points behind them, and the Ottawa Senators, who are currently tied with them on the season, it seems fairly obvious that these next three games are must-win if the Leafs want to make a push for the playoffs.

In a sense, it is a bit of a new season for the Leafs. Matthews is returning to the team with a new sense of pride and perhaps some extra confidence that he has what it takes to lead his team to a championship in an elimination tournament (albeit a best-on-best one), and the fact that he shut down the best player in the NHL in Connor McDavid down to help his team win certainly deserves some flowers on its own. Several players who were nursing injuries, most notably Matthew Knies, have gotten three weeks off to relax and rehab their ailments, and they have both of their starting goaltenders in Anthony Stolarz and Joseph Woll healthy to start the final stretch.

Let it be known that, from a personal point of view, I believe the Leafs should make an effort to sell off some pieces regardless of how these next few games go. They are so deprived of anything in the cupboards that buying at the deadline is seemingly impossible outside of non-needle movers like bottom pair defencemen or fourth-line forwards, which they have an abundance of. And, personally, I believe that if they were to part ways with somebody like Bobby McMann, and maybe some other lower-value players like Simon Benoit or Calle Jarnkrok, their on-ice performance wouldn’t be drastically different compared to if they were to stand pat and play out the season with the roster they currently have. The only difference is that they would have some extra assets in the cupboards to restock their prospect system come the summer. They could even use those assets to buy if they really wanted to, but it would probably be a smarter long-term play to get younger and keep the draft picks.

At any rate, this group does not want to concede the season, so these next couple of games are as important as any they’ve played this year. They have an incredibly condensed schedule to finish the season with six games to play before the deadline, which is nine days from now, and if they win their next three games, it could go a long way in deciding the direction they take at the deadline. There’s no margin for error from here on out, and it’s never been more prevalent than in these next three.

The 2026 Trade Deadline Special is going LIVE March 6th. Join the Daily Faceoff crew on Friday, March 6th, from 11 AM-3:30 PM ET for wall-to-wall coverage of every single move as it happens. Get instant reaction, expert analysis, and exclusive insights from special guests throughout the day. Tune in LIVE on the Daily Faceoff YouTube channel and don’t miss a second of deadline day chaos.