Matthew Knies trade news revealed by Darren Dreger shortly after Jim Hiller hired as head coach
Photo credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images
John Chayka is listening on Matthew Knies. Jim Hiller just got hired.
Nobody is asking what this process costs the new coach before it starts.
Darren Dreger confirmed Tuesday that Chayka is taking calls on Knies from multiple clubs, naming the Rangers and Canadiens specifically.
Re Maple Leafs: "I think John Chayka is listening to interest on Matthew Knies from a lot of different teams, I would throw the Rangers in there, the Canadiens; go down the list."
- Darren Dreger
- Darren Dreger
That is significant sourcing on a 23-year-old who just posted 66 points and carries $7.75 million against the cap through 2031.
The more uncomfortable question is not whether the trade happens. It is what the public search does to Hiller's locker room on arrival.
A new coach walks into a poisoned dynamic
Hiller has not run a single practice as a Maple Leaf. He has not spoken to Knies about his role, his minutes, or what the team is building.
Knies already knows his name is being shopped to New York and Montreal. Jeff O'Neill noted on TSN OverDrive that Knies will eventually want to ask management one question: am I wanted here?
Chayka answering that with silence only makes it louder.
The Canadiens have context here. They nearly completed this deal at the deadline before Brad Treliving failed to submit on time.
That botched submission left a known package on the table - Zharovsky, another top prospect, and two first-round picks, per David Pagnotta's reporting.
What the Rangers' involvement actually changes
The Canadiens being linked reads as unfinished business. The Rangers being in it changes the math entirely.
New York has cap room, needs a physical left-side forward, and has the draft assets to beat Montreal's offer.
A bidding war between those two franchises is the best outcome for Chayka. He is not shopping Knies - he is letting the market arrive at a number worth disrupting the roster for.
The problem is the disruption itself. Hiller's first summer ends either with his best power forward gone or with a player who knows the market was tested on him.
Both outcomes start the same way. Awkward.
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