NHL analyst reckons Nick Robertson is among 3 Maple Leafs forwards who may not make Toronto's opening night roster

On the First Up podcast, NHL analyst Chris Johnston discussed the decisions the Toronto Maple Leafs may need to make regarding Calle Jarnkrok, David Kampf, and Nick Robertson.

The Maple Leafs are facing a roster crunch and must finalize their opening night roster. Johnston suggested that the Leafs may need to waive one of two players whose roster spots are not guaranteed.

Jarnkrok, Kampf, and Robertson are among those whose positions are uncertain, though no final decision has been made.

"It's possible, one of them isn't part of the team on the opening night roster because the Leafs are gonna towards the end of training camp have to likely waive a player or two, that's kind of on the bubble and not saying it'll be for sure one of those three, but I think it's very possible it ends up being one of those three, and that's kind of where they're at," Johnston said.

He added:

"It depends what Easton Cowan does. There's a lot of moving parts. But one interesting part of this year's camp is this time last year, if you were looking at camp, it was pretty clear where things were likely going because of the cap picture, but you still have flexibility to manage a team a little differently."

To make roster adjustments, the teams often need to place players on waivers to send them to the AHL or make other moves. The Maple Leafs will need to finalize their roster by early October, typically just before the NHL regular season begins.

NHL Insider shares his thoughts on Easton Cowan making the Maple Leafs' opening night roster

During a recent TSN Overdrive segment, NHL insider Mike Johnson shared his thoughts on Easton Cowan’s chances of making the Maple Leafs’ opening night roster.

He suggested that Cowan’s odds are not strong, not due to a lack of talent, but because the team has a lot of players on the roster, and Cowan is the easiest to send down.

“I don't think they're great, not because he's not talented, because the same problem I just outlined, right? There's too many players, and he's the easiest guy.”

Cowan was drafted 28th overall by the Leafs in the 2023 NHL Draft. The 20-year-old has yet to make an appearance for the Leafs in the regular season.