Previewing the Maple Leafs’ 2025-26 Depth Chart: The Wingers

Labour Day is a week away, and for the hockey world, it means summer is about over, rookie tournaments will soon begin, and before we know it, we’ll be watching preseason in anticipation of the October 8 season opener. 

There are still a few players available on the open market with ties to the Leafs, be it Max Pacioretty or Jack Roslovic. As we round into the hockey season, the last week of August marks a good time to sort through the Leafs‘ depth chart.

We’ll go position by position, starting with each forward group, with the caveat that this exercise is not intended to create line combinations. This is a ranking of each player, by specific position, to gain a lay of the land ahead of 2025-26.

Because the Leafs added a reasonable amount of depth this summer, there is all sorts of room to move around the pieces and attempt to optimize the lineup as best as possible. We will get to that when the time comes, but for now, let’s chart out in raw terms where the roster stands.

Left Wing

This group is pretty clear-cut, with some caveats and question marks. 

Matthew Knies received a substantial long-term commitment from the Leafs and is a prized player in the organization. He will need to take another step forward to help offset the loss of Mitch Marner, and he’ll need to prove his 29-goal season while shooting 19 percent was not an aberration. 

Knies is one of the better young power forwards in the league, has already established himself as a viable linemate for 1C Auston Matthews, and still contains untapped potential. He is not a full-fledged, established top-line player sitting atop their left wing depth chart, though.

Behind Knies, we could quibble with the order of Bobby McMann vs. Dakota Joshua, but I don’t think it’s much of a debate right now. McMann scored more goals than Joshua did points last season, and if we had to pick one to hit 20 goals next season, McMann is the easy choice for me, even though he ended last season on a brutal 24-game goal drought.

Joshua lost the start of his 2024-25 season due to testicular cancer and never fully got back on track afterward. In the season before, he was a legitimately good third liner who could effectively forecheck and chip in goals, and he is quietly a good penalty killer.

The reality is that both Joshua and McMann will receive looks up the lineup throughout the season. We’ll see who wins out. 

And then there’s Steven Lorentz. Last season, he was a useful fourth liner who was very good defensively, scored some big goals, and played an honest game. He was rewarded with a contract extension with a notable term — he’s going to see ice time — but he’s more or less solidified in what he is. 

All four left-wingers bring size and have flashed power forward styles, but they also lack established production. The range of possibilities is vast: Knies could be a 30+ goal winger, while McMann and Joshua can each feasibly score around the 20-goal mark. Or all three could combine to score under 50 goals. 

There is also a wildcard in Easton Cowan. Yes, he played other forward positions in London, but short of proving he can viably play his off-wing, I consider him a strong-side winger like the majority of players in the league. It is extremely difficult for 20-year-old players to make really good teams in the league in general, much less play their off-wing in the NHL on a nightly basis. 

For now, I’m placing Cowan on the left, where he’s technically only behind Michael Pezzetta. Pezzetta is a veteran with a clear role that will almost surely get into NHL games, whereas Cowan will have to take a job away from someone or seize an opportunity due to an injury or underperformance.

I also listed Bo Groulx above, even though he has played a good amount of center, due to the center logjam on the roster; someone has to play wing, where there is a better path for Groulx to receive looks with the Leafs. It’s worth noting that Groulx is just 25 years old and was signed to a two-year deal by the organization.

With this group, there’s a ton of size and individual traits to like with each player — Knies’ net front presence, McMann’s speed and shot, Joshua’s forechecking, and Lorentz’s defensive play — but again, production is a huge question mark. There’s no proven stud, and the two middle-six wingers, both of whom are pushing 30, have mustered just one productive season apiece in the league.

Overall, there is one legitimate top-six forward here, another you’d ideally start on your third line in McMann, an effective fourth liner in Lorentz, and a player in Joshua who can be a third liner but played more like a fourth liner last season. Pezzetta is a pure role player, while Cowan lingers as a true wildcard. 

But there are potential options that are interchangeable between wings.

Right Wing

The right-wing cohort differs significantly from the left.

For one, there is a proven star in William Nylander to anchor the group. He finished second in the league in goals last season and has hit the 40-goal mark three seasons running. 

After Nylander, there is at least some track record of production to point to compared to the left side. Domi and Maccelli have both put together decent track records of production, and even Nick Robertson, plus a healthy Calle Jarnkrok, can be counted on to comfortably reach double-digit goal totals. 

Another difference is also notable: There are only two right-handed shots among the NHLers (Borya Valis is right-handed, but he has a long way to go to sniff the NHL). 

Several options listed as right-wingers are left-handed and can play left wing, too, but we are listing them on the right side out of necessity. Otherwise, we’re looking at a group of only Nylander and Jarnkrok.

I believe this is why we continue to hear the Leafs linked to Jack Roslovic. He would add another proven NHL right-handed shot to their forward group, so in that regard, the fit makes sense.

Compared to some of the other teams he has been linked to — namely, the Vancouver Canucks — the Leafs are a much better fit for Roslovic as well. Vancouver needs center help, and while Roslovic has played center, he’s ideally deployed on the wing. The Leafs are deep down the middle and have attractive centers he can pair with up and down the lineup. In Carolina, Roslovic did essentially all of his damage on the wing. 

The drawback with Roslovic is that he’s an offense-first winger who struggles defensively. Several Leafs already fit this mold — in fact, the first four players listed on the right wing depth chart all qualify — so the main benefits are essentially that he’s right-handed, bigger than all of them, and arguably a better proven goal scorer than all but Nylander. 

As the depth chart stands without Roslovic, there’s a proven top-line talent in Nylander and a group of four players who have all demonstrated they can be solid, top-nine wingers but are all coming off trying seasons to varying degrees.

Domi posted the second least productive season of his career in 2024-25. Maccelli battled the worst season of his career and played his way out of Utah. Robertson finally played a full healthy season to once again find himself scratched nightly in the playoffs. Jarnkrok was injured most of the season and never really found his form. 

The group of four can shake out all sorts of ways, but for now, Domi has the highest salary among them and has built some real chemistry with Matthews, so he’s listed in the second slot. Maccelli is the next highest paid, and the Leafs sacrificed assets to acquire him. Darren Dreger tweeted immediately that the Leafs hope to try him out in the top six, and with his skillset, Maccelli will receive looks up the lineup.

As for Robertson and Jarnkrok, in terms of a checking/defensive fourth line role, Jarnkrok makes a lot more sense and played there in the playoffs. The coaching staff could decide to run the same line with Jarnkrok, Lorentz, and Laughton. But the Leafs have invested in Robertson’s development, and he’s only turning 24 in September. He’s slated to be the second youngest player on the team, a fact the Leafs are clearly mindful of.  

The group is genuinely five deep with not much listed below them, but it should be noted that both Boyd and Lettieri are right-handed, so they could conceivably move over as well.

Programming Note: Next up in the depth chart series will be the center position, followed by the defense