Weekly Takes - Monday, June 3 Edition

Weekly Takes - Monday, June 3 Edition

1. When it comes to Easton Cowan, I do not get the "send him back to London in the fall," talk.

He tore up the OHL in historic fashion during the regular season, was the best player in the league in the playoffs, and was the best player in the country during the Memorial Cup.

Sending him back to London would stunt his development.

As long as he does not look out of place in preseason (there is no reason to think he will), he should make the Maple Leafs out of camp.

Maybe he goes to Team Canada at Christmas, but he should be a Leaf on opening night in October.

2. With free agency a month away, here would be my targets for the Leafs, given their positional needs... (while equating for their cap space, ruling out the likes of Sam Reinhart)

1. RD Brandon Montour (1RD)

2. RD Brett Pesce (1RD)

3. RD Chris Tanvev (1RD)

4. RD Matt Roy (2RD)

5. RD Sean Walker (2RD)

6. LW Jake DeBrusk (With Cowan, Matthew Knies, and Bobby McMann at LW (plus Tyler Bertuzzi if he re-signs), DeBrusk is not much of a fit, but he is young and the defintion of a player performer. You make room for him if you can make it work)

7. C Chandler Stephenson (2/3 C)

8. C Matt Duchene (2/3C)

9. G Laurent Brossoit (Backup Goalie)

10. G Anthony Stolarz (Backup Goalie)

11. G Cam Talbot (Backup Goalie)

12. RW Tyler Toffoli (if the Leafs trade Mitch Marner, opening up a need at RW)

13. RW Steven Stamkos (if the Leafs trade Mitch Marner, opening up a need at RW)

14. RW Patrick Kane (if the Leafs trade Mitch Marner, opening up a need at RW)

It is impossible to say what the Leafs needs will be if they trade Marner, as they'd be opening one up at right wing, but perhaps closing a need or two elsewhere. But as of right now, they need a third line centre, two top-four RHD, and a backup goalie.

It's a great class for all of the above.

3. In regards to the Blue Jays, I wrote a week ago how Mark Shapiro, Ross Atkins, and the Blue Jays' scouting departments and player development department should take the fall for a failure of an era.

But what does that mean for the roster?

The most immediate moves have to be trading Yusei Kikichi, Yimi Garica, and Trevor Richards, three pending free agents on the wrong side of 30. The Jays have to replenish their farm system and trading three pending free agents who they should have no desire to re-sign is the easiest way to start that process.

I would go a step further as well and look at trading Kevin Gausman, Chris Bassitt, Jordan Romano, and Tim Mayza, all of whom are under contract beyond 2024. In one fall swoop, the Jays could unload a ton of payroll and drastically improve their farm system, all while not trading a single player under 30.

And I would not trade the 30-and-under players. Jose Berrios is a pitcher I would keep around through a retool, while Alek Manoah's potential value to the Jays is simply way higher than it'd be on the trade market.

And offensively, I continue to think winning a Bo Bichette and/or Vladimir Guerrero Jr. trade is close to impossible. I would keep and re-sign both, while surrounding them around Danny Jansen (who re-signing is a must), Davis Schneider, and Daulton Varsho.

All five players are young enough to the point where they will still have lots to offer when a retool is complete.

And I think a retool is the play, rather than a rebuild. There are too many good, young players to rebuild.

Replenishing the farm system and unloading salary, allowing the Jays to be active in free agency over the next few offseasons while committing long-term to Guerrero Jr., Bichette, and Jansen, is the play.

It sucks that they would be depleting one of the best rotations in baseball, but the reality is, the Jays’ ability to get better is almost nonexistent, with a bottom-tier prospect system and a top-ten payroll.

The “flexibility” that Shapiro and Atkins touted in the fall of 2019 has been squandered. A new set of eyes needs to come in and hit the reset.

4. There is a chance ownership is committed to Shapiro, Atkins, and this core, though, which means talking about the future of the Blue Jays is meaningless.

That leaves the present to talk about, in which case, why are Spencer Horwirtz and Addison Barger still in Triple-A? They have nothing left to prove in the minors and would represent upgrades over the likes of Cavan Biggio and Justin Turner.

The Jays are not fielding their best big-league roster.

5. It is tough to ask for a better NBA Final than Mavericks-Celtics.

Two superstars in Luka Doncic and Jayson Tatum eyeing their first ring, Kyrie Irving and Kristaps Porzingis facing their former teams, and Mark Cuban in the fold.

This could be an all-time series.

6. Barring an actual prison sentence, which I guess cannot be ruled out, I do not see Donald Trump's guilty verdict swaying the election one way or another.

If you support Trump in 2024, there is nothing that can happen that will sway you. If you dislike Trump, this is just one more thing to add to the list, albeit very high up on the list.

The election is going to come down to whether or not enough people come out to vote for Joe Biden, or at the very least, against Trump. Because we know Trump supporters are going to show up.

This was true before the verdict and remains true after.