Michael Grabner to Maple Leafs: Latest Trade Details, Comments and Reaction

September 17th, 2015 by Adam Wells Leave a reply »

Looking to bolster their front line heading into the 2015-16 season, the Toronto Maple Leafs acquired forward Michael Grabner from the New York Islanders on Thursday.   

The deal was announced on the Maple Leafs' official website, with the Islanders receiving Taylor Beck, Carter Verhaeghe, Matt Finn, Tom Nilsson and Christopher Gibson. 

The Maple Leafs are looking toward the future coming off of last season's disappointing 30-44-8 record. The franchise's 68 points were its fewest in a full season since 1996-97. 

Toronto President Brendan Shanahan told reporters in April, per Mike Brophy of NHL.com, that the franchise can no longer try to take shortcuts when it comes to building a roster that can compete for Stanley Cup titles: "The challenge in Toronto is not coming up with the plan but sticking to the plan. That is the hard part. Our vision is to draft and develop our own players. I think every decision we make has to be about building a winning organization that can sustain itself year after year after year through the draft."

Grabner does fit into Shanahan's plan for the future, ...

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