MILTON, Ont. — Before the Toronto Maple Leafs take to the ice Thursday morning for Day 1 of training camp, head coach Craig Berube may wish to dangle a giant carrot from the roof of the Ford Performance Centre.
One of the most coveted jobs in the sport is now available: right wing on a deadly top line with all-world centre Auston Matthews and stud left wing Matthew Knies.
Oh, and the runner-up prize — joining John Tavares and William Nylander on Line 2 — isnâ€t too shabby either.
How have those top-six openings impacted the motivation of new Leaf Matias Maccelli?
“Itâ€s probably the highest itâ€s ever been, coming here. I mean, whatâ€s a better place to play?†Maccelli said Monday, before teeing it up at Rattlesnake Point Golf Club for the Leafs & Legends Charity Golf Classic.
“First of all, it would be nice to play playoffs for the first time in my career.â€
Despite the off-season departure of Matthews†former right winger, most of us think like Maccelli — that Torontoâ€s NHL-best nine-season postseason streak wonâ€t suddenly come to a crashing halt.
But for that prediction to come true and, moreover, for the top end of the Leafs’ lineup to maintain something near the offensive punch of 100-point seasons past, a fresh top-six wingman must emerge.
That could be veteran Max Domi rising to the task after an inconsistent 2024-25. Perhaps determined prospect Easton Cowan wows as a rookie, or forechecker-with-hands Dakota Joshua bounces back from a season derailed by testicular cancer. Maybe late bloomer Bobby McMann rebounds from his goal-less playoffs, or Nick Robertson sticks it to the doubters.
Or, just maybe, GM Brad Trelivingâ€s buy-low flyer on the undersized Maccelli pays off.
To obtain the 24-year-old from Utah, Treliving needed only spend a conditional 2027 third-round draft pick. (The pick gets upgraded to a second-rounder in 2029 if the Leafs earn a playoff berth and Maccelli records at least 51 points in 2025-26.)
In 2023-24, during the Arizona Coyotes†last hurrah, Maccelli racked up an impressive 17 goals and 40 points while playing all 82 games, mostly alongside big, powerful forwards Nick Bjugstad and Lawson Crouse. (Hey, Matthews and Knies are big and strong and enjoy skating with a disher, too.)
But the Turku, Finland, native fell out of favour in Utah last winter.
He got scratched. He got frustrated.
He got nudged to the trade block, where he got Coyotes icon–turned–Leafs executive Shane Doanâ€s attention.
Maccelli, who can also chip in on the power-play, sees a path back to his 57-point benchmark.
“It comes down to ice time and opportunity kind of with the points,†he said. “It wasnâ€t obviously the best year for me myself, but I still know I’m a better player than I was back in Arizona. I got it still in me. So, now I just gotta show people that again.â€
A source who has been watching Maccelli since his Finnish Elite League days extolls his “artistic†passing skills and excellent offensive instincts. “A poor manâ€s Clayton Keller,†according to the source, Maccelli can improve a second power-play unit and, at his best, slow the game, locate lanes, and create scoring chances.
The knock: Maccelli is not so trustworthy in the defensive zone and can disappear completely on nights when heâ€s not feeling it. Weâ€re told heâ€s a long shot to dominate Torontoâ€s fitness testing and that consistency can be an issue.
Inspiration, though, should not be.
Not when Berube is looking for a playmaker, and not when Maccelli himself (RFA 2026) is staring at free agency.
Maccelli (5-foot-11, 185 pounds) says he hit the gym this summer and will report stronger and faster.
“I’ve been working a lot this summer on my game, more than maybe in previous years. So, just have to be comfortable again with the puck and make plays,†Maccelli said. “But I’ve definitely been going to work and this summer, and Iâ€m ready to go.â€
Unlike Joshua, who was surprised to be traded from the West to the East this summer, Maccelli was indeed ready to go in June.
Maccelliâ€s agent, Ian Pulver, had tipped him off to the likelihood of a trade. He knew multiple teams were working on proposals.
“Toronto was one of the teams who showed the most interest,†Maccelli says. “Right from the start, I told my agent that I would love to play for the Leafs.â€
Maccelli, who returns home to Turku in the summer, was lining up a putt on June 30 when his friends started yelling out the breaking news: He had just been traded to Toronto. Letâ€s go.
“No,†Maccelli conceded. Blame the excitement.
“But still played a decent round.â€
The replace-him-in-the-aggregate Maple Leafs are flush with decent middle-six forwards. What they need is for one or two of those to exceed expectations.
Maccelli has only had a short conversation with Berube so far, but heâ€s out to prove in camp that heâ€s both mentally and physically strong enough for top-six work in a market thatâ€s hotter than Utah and Arizona combined.
To that end, the player says he tends not to “overthink stuff,†which will be of benefit when he falls under scrutiny. And Berube has hinted that he wonâ€t throw left-shot Maccelli, who maintains his comfort playing either wing, onto Matthews†right side immediately.
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Leafs Nation need only scroll back to the Nick Ritchie experiment of 2021-22: Give a flyer too much too soon, and the results may underwhelm.
Still, the proverbial carrot, it hovers.
Count Maccelli among the handful of Leafs wingers auditioning to skate with Matthews.
“I would definitely love that. Playing with the guy like that would be great,†Maccelli said.
“I want to have a better season than Iâ€ve had. Make it the best one of my career. And enjoy. Have fun.â€
Like a shooter and a passer, the two kinda go hand in hand.
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