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Making the best of a bad situation, the Maple Leafs have used their cap relief on the injured Matt Murray’s contract to expand their roster to 23 players.

As announced by LeafsPR this morning, defenseman Victor Mete will join the big club in addition to forwards Wayne Simmonds and Nick Robertson.

After he by all accounts (including Sheldon Keefe’s assessment) earned a spot through training camp and exhibition season, Robertson will join the team with the opportunity to feature in the lineup against brother Jason Robertson and the Dallas Stars later this week as well as take the road trip through his home state of California in late October.

An extended competition that included a rotation with Denis Malgin during a busy start to the season may have been the situation if the cap and waivers were not factors, so we’ll see if and when Robertson will receive a look on the Tavares-Nylander line, assuming Sheldon Keefe is happy with his bottom six so far (which seems to be the case, though it’s early and could change quickly).

After scoring in the opener (an empty-net tap-in at the top of the crease), Malgin has not registered a shot on goal in the subsequent two games and has averaged 12:09 in time-on-ice per game, albeit the line has generally given the Leafs respectable minutes through the opening week so far with positive underlying numbers, a few penalties drawn, and one goal for/zero goals against through 27 minutes at 5v5. Perhaps Robertson, with his high-end shot and eagerness to get pucks to the net, can help elevate the line another notch offensively.

Simmonds has been skating at the Leafs’ facilities instead of joining the Marlies, and with an intense schedule upcoming, he may get into a game down the lineup at some point. He is not going to be an everyday regular again as he was earlier in this Leafs career barring injuries, especially given the David Kampf-led fourth line has been relied on a fair bit defensively. But on occasion, he might be able to work alongside a Zach Aston-Reese or Nicolas Aube-Kubel in terms of providing a physical edge and a little bit of touch around the front of the net.

Reports indicate Simmonds is extremely hungry to remain a part of the NHL team and embark on another playoff run, which is why he did not report to the Marlies (nor did the Leafs ask him to, choosing to leave it up to the player). As a 13th/14th forward, he should be able to provide a respected veteran presence and occasional on-ice value — it’s additional competition on the roster in the form of a hungry player who can perhaps provide a spark at times during the long grind of the season.

Of course, Kyle Dubas has also let the other 31 NHL GMs know that Simmonds is available for trade and hungry for an opportunity.

Mete should similarly add some additional competition as a right-side option on defense, where the Leafs gave him plenty of reps in camp and preseason. Sandin is getting a fair run next to the stabilizing veteran presence of Mark Giordano as he continues to make the adjustment to the right side, but Mete will provide an additional option there in case of injury or underperformance.

Having all three around avoids a scenario where the Leafs have to play short a player in order to trigger emergency recalls should an injury arise. Matt Murray to LTIR one game into the season is not how anyone would’ve drawn this up given the importance of getting both goalies rolling without demanding too much of either of them early on. But the silver lining is the flexibility it adds to the 23-man player roster during a really busy month in the schedule.

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