Maple Leafs Rebuild From the Bottom of the Atlantic

Finishing 32-36-14 and last in the Atlantic was a hard reset, not a slow decline. The front office responded with genuine urgency: a new general manager in John Chayka, a new coach in Jim Hiller, a proven starting goalie in Sergei Bobrovsky, a power-play quarterback in Darren Raddysh, and the first overall pick in Gavin McKenna. The ambition is real. The execution is still unproven.

Last season in review

The 2025-26 numbers were ugly in the right way to diagnose. Toronto scored 253 goals and allowed 299, a differential of minus-46 that explains the 78 points and the Atlantic basement. William Nylander led the team with 79 points, John Tavares added 71, and Matthew Knies contributed 66, so the offence was not the core problem. The team finished last in the NHL in 5-on-5 shot attempts percentage at 45.5, meaning they were consistently outworked at even strength. Joseph Woll went 15-16-7 with a .899 save percentage, a number that was not catastrophic but not good enough to cover for a leaky structure in front of him. The defence gave up too much, the goaltending could not compensate, and the coaching staff paid for it.

Ins and outs

• In: John Chayka (hired as GM, May 3)
• In: Jim Hiller (hired as head coach, June 17)
• In: Darren Raddysh (sign-and-trade from Tampa Bay Lightning, eight-year contract, June 19)
• In: Emil Andrae (trade from Philadelphia Flyers, with Samuel Ersson and a third-round pick, June 16)
• In: Gavin McKenna (selected first overall in 2026 NHL Draft, June 26)
• In: Sergei Bobrovsky (signed as free agent, three-year contract, July 1)
• In: Nick Paul (trade from Tampa Bay Lightning, July 1)
• In: Jack Roslovic (signed as free agent)
• In: Colton Sissons (signed as free agent)
• In: Teddy Blueger (signed as free agent, two-year contract, July 1)
• In: Brandon Duhaime (signed as free agent, three-year contract, July 1)
• Out: Joseph Woll (traded to Philadelphia Flyers, June 16)
• Out: Simon Benoit (traded to Philadelphia Flyers, June 16)
• Out: Brandon Carlo (traded to St. Louis Blues, June 27)
• Out: Dennis Hildeby (traded to Tampa Bay Lightning, July 1)
• Out: Nicholas Robertson (signed with Pittsburgh Penguins, July 14)
• Out: Matias Maccelli (signed with New York Islanders, July 1)
• Out: Calle Jarnkrok (signed with Brynas in the SHL)
• Out: Craig Berube (fired as head coach, May 13)
• Out: Brad Treliving (fired as GM, March 30)

The big question

Can Bobrovsky actually rebound? His .877 save percentage last season was the worst of his NHL career, and at 37 he is being asked to carry the starter's load for a team that allowed 299 goals. Toronto's defensive structure needs to improve under Hiller, but if Bobrovsky cannot return to something closer to his Stanley Cup-era form, the Leafs are building on a shaky foundation.

X-factor

Darren Raddysh. The 30-year-old defenceman arrives after a career year with Tampa Bay: 22 goals, 48 assists, 70 points, and 10 power-play goals in 73 games. Toronto finished last in the NHL in 5-on-5 shot attempts percentage and had almost no reliable power-play quarterback from the back end. If Raddysh replicates even a portion of that production, he changes the team's offence in ways no forward signing could.

Bold prediction

McKenna earns a top-six role and wins the Calder Trophy, but Toronto falls just short of a playoff spot for the second straight year, landing on the outside of the Wild Card picture in April.

The outlook

The Maple Leafs open at home against Montreal on September 29 with a roster that looks meaningfully different on paper than the one that finished last in the Atlantic. Chayka has taken real swings. Hiller brings a defensive structure that worked in Los Angeles. Whether the pieces fit together quickly enough to get Toronto back to the playoffs after its first missed postseason since 2016 is the only question that matters now.