Toronto Maple Leafs: Trades Alone Will Not Fix Team

Toronto Maple Leafs: Trades Alone Will Not Fix Team

Oct 17, 2014; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Maple Leafs right wing

(81) warms up as head coach

looks on from the bench before their game against the Detroit Red Wings at Air Canada Centre. Mandatory Credit: Tom Szczerbowski-USA TODAY Sports

When it came to the Toronto Maple Leafs situation, it was an easy decision to give Randy Carlyle the boot. It was also easy to criticize star player Phil Kessel, because he is the highest paid player on the team. However, to sit there and say that making trades will fix the Leafs problems is absurd, especially when it comes to trading a player that produces at an elite level.

Oct 8, 2014; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; A general view of the Air Canada Centre prior to the start of the game between the Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs . Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports

There will be trades made by the Leafs either at the trade deadline or close to the NHL draft. You can read some of the options here, but teams cannot rely on trades to build a team. I really do not like to make comparisons with other teams, but I will give you examples of when trading can help build a winner and when it can backfire on a team.