"The 2025-26 season has been an unmitigated disaster for the Leafs. They entered the campaign with expectations of extending their playoff appearance streak to a league-best nine seasons. But not only will Toronto miss the playoffs, it might not even get the chance to make its own first-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft."
"That's because the pick is owned by the rival Boston Bruins as a result of the Brandon Carlo trade from March of 2025. The B's got the Leafs' 2026 first-rounder (top-five protected), a 2026 fourth-rounder (via Flyers) and young center Fraser Minten in exchange for Carlo."
"The Maple Leafs enter Friday with the eighth-worst record in the league based on points percentage. The TL;DR explanation that fans need to know right now is the pick is top-five protected in 2026, and based on the current standings and projections, there's a good chance the pick conveys to the Bruins this year."
The Toronto Maple Leafs were the only NHL team without a win following the three-week Olympic break, finally defeating the Anaheim Ducks 6-4 on Thursday to end an eight-game losing streak. The 2025-26 season has been catastrophic for Toronto, which entered with expectations of extending its playoff streak to nine consecutive seasons. Instead, the team faces potential playoff elimination and loss of its first-round draft pick to the Boston Bruins. The pick, acquired in the Brandon Carlo trade from March 2025, is top-five protected in 2026 and likely to convey to Boston based on current standings and projections.
Read at NBC Sports Boston
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