One of Kyle Dubas’ Final Trades as GM Might Have the Leafs Looking Back With Regret Again

Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Sam Rinzel corralling a loose puck behind his own net.

Photo credit: Talia Sprague – Imagn Images

Kyle Dubas made quite a few mistakes as GM of the Leafs, but there’s one in particular that doesn’t get talked about enough, with the recent rise of Sam Rinzel.There’s always going to be hindsight bias when you look back on trades, especially those involving draft picks. In saying that, the Toronto Maple Leafs are about to uncover another fatal flaw from Kyle Dubas’ tenure with Sam Rinzel making his rounds for the Chicago Blackhawks.In return, Toronto received a second round pick that turned into Fraser Minten, but had they held on to their original pick, they could have had a 6’4, right shot defenseman ready to make an impact tomorrow.

Rinzel quickly rose up the ranks with 2 stellar seasons in the NCAA with the University of Minnesota. He scored 28 points in 39 games in his first season before finishing things off with 10 goals and 32 points last year as he made his way to the NHL for the final 9 contests.

Dubas clearly felt he needed to get out of Mrazek’s contract after an uneven first season in Toronto, where he posted an .888 SV% and a 3.34 GAA in 20 games. On the surface, the move didn’t seem all that bad as they only dropped 13 spots in the draft, but in the end it proved to be very costly.

At the very least, the Leafs were able to acquire Carlo from the Bruins in exchange for Minten, who hadn’t quite made the impact they were hoping for. Carlo was a great addition to the blue-line last year and he should be expected to shoulder a large burden of defensive responsibilities in 2025-26.

It might have been a move that saved the Leafs cap space but it proved to be very costly for a different reason. Rinzel has just 9 NHL games under his belt, so it could be a bit premature, but the 21-year-old has all the makings of a top pair defenseman who is big, mobile, and has great offensive instincts.

Previously on MapleLeafsDaily

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