Matthew Knies is gone from Toronto, but Jim Hiller's Maple Leafs reportedly explored an even bigger trade before finally moving the winger.
Knies was dealt to the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday in the six-player swap that brought Kirill Marchenko to Toronto. New reporting suggests that wasn't Toronto's first attempt to move him.
According to Frank Seravalli, the Maple Leafs offered Knies to the San Jose Sharks during the summer while targeting a massive package of first-round draft picks.
Toronto reportedly wanted San Jose's 3 first-round selections in the 2026 NHL Draft, including the No. 2 overall pick. The Sharks declined the proposal.
That decision kept one of the draft's premium selections in San Jose. General manager Mike Grier had previously acknowledged receiving several calls about the pick and said one proposal was especially interesting.
There's no confirmation that Grier was referring specifically to Toronto's Knies offer. But the reported discussions show just how aggressively the Maple Leafs were testing his trade value.
Maple Leafs had Knies in trade talks for months
San Jose ultimately kept the No. 2 selection and used it on winger Ivar Stenberg. The Sharks also held onto another valuable piece of their draft capital rather than turning the package into Knies.
For Toronto, the bigger takeaway is the timeline. Knies wasn't simply moved after one late push from Columbus. The Maple Leafs had reportedly been exploring major alternatives well before the deal was completed.
That makes Monday's trade look less like a sudden roster shakeup and more like the end of a process that had been developing behind the scenes.
Knies eventually landed in Columbus, where head coach Rick Bowness now gets a big, physical winger capable of working around the crease and playing inside the top six.
Toronto went in another direction with Marchenko as the centerpiece coming back. And after the reported San Jose discussions surfaced, it's clear the Leafs were prepared to make a major change involving Knies.
The Sharks simply had a different price on their draft capital.
Had San Jose accepted Toronto's reported proposal, the entire shape of the Maple Leafs' offseason would have changed. Instead, Knies stayed put until Columbus finally provided the deal Toronto was willing to complete.
Should the Maple Leafs have preferred San Jose's 3 first-round picks for Matthew Knies?
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