Maple Leafs Trade James Reimer to Sharks

The Toronto Maple Leafs continued their fire sale before the  NHL Trade Deadline ends on Monday, February 29 at 3pm.

The latest victim was goaltender James Reimer, who along with Jeremy Morin, were sent to the San Jose Sharks in exchange for goaltender Alex Stalock, forward Ben Smith, and a conditional fourth round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft. The Leafs called up goalie Garrett Sparks from its American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Toronto Marlies, after the trade was complete. The Leafs still have a few more players that they could trade before the deadline.

Reimer had been with the Leafs organization since 2006 when they drafted him in the fourth round. He played in 32 games this year where he had an 11-12-7 record. In those 32 games, Reimer compiled a 2.49 goals against average to go with a .918 save percentage. He split the crease duties with Jonathan Bernier and also missed some time due to injury. The goalie is 1-4-1 in his last six games played with a 4.44 goals against average and a .828 save percentage, but the Leafs have been trading away players for a few weeks now, and had a lot of young kids on the team.

In 207 career games played, he has an 85-76-23 record with a .914 save percentage and a 2.83 goals against average. He has 11 shutouts in those 207 games as well. Reimer has seven games of playoff experience from the 2013 season when the Leafs lost to the Boston Bruins in the first round. He was 3-4 with a .923 save percentage and a 2.13 goals against. Reimer also has represented Canada twice during the World Championships.

The goalie is set to become a free agent at the end of the season so it is possible that he could resign with the Leafs in the offseason. The Sharks needed a backup goalie to help out Martin Jones, and they got a veteran goalie, who can contribute down the stretch in a playoff race. Reimer has good size and a good glove hand, but he can let in the bad goals from time to time.

Jeremy Morin is the other piece of the trade that will be going to the Sharks. He has played in the AHL all season with the Rockford Ice Hogs and Toronto Marlies. In 41 games, he has 11 goals, 17 assists, 28 points and is a +7. Morin has 82 games NHL experience with the Chicago Blackhawks and Columbus Blue Jackets. In those 82 games, he has 10 goals, 12 assists, 22 points and is a +8. The forward can play either right wing or left wing even though he is only an average skater.

The Sharks will send goalie Alex Stalock to the Leafs. Stalock is 28-years-old and has split his time between the San Jose Barracuda and the Sharks. In 13 games played with the Sharks, he is 3-5-0 with a 2.94 goals against average and a .884 save percentage. In two games with the Barracuda, Stalock was 2-0-0 with a 1.96 goals against average to go with a .930 save percentage. The Leafs will give Sparks a chance in net to see what he can do at the NHL level. Stalock is also an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season so the Leafs most likely won’t have him on the roster beyond this season.

Ben Smith will be going to Toronto along with Stalock. Smith has played in both the AHL and the NHL this season. In 14 games with the Barracuda, he has eight goals, two assists and ten points. He has zero points in the six games he played with the Sharks this year. In 181 NHL games played, he has 25 goals, 19 assists, 44 ppoints and has averaged 12:31 of ice time per game. Smith is a good skater that could be a two-way player in the NHL. He isn’t a physical force on the ice, but he also isn’t afraid to shoot the puck.

The Leafs will also receive a conditional fourth round pick in the 2018 NHL Entry Draft.