Last night, a rumor was started by Elliotte Friedman that Toronto Maple Leafs forward Ilya Mikheyev had requested a trade from the team. However, Kyle Dubas would have decided not to exercise the wish of the Russian forward.
According to the renowned journalist, Mikheyev would have wanted to leave Toronto because of his ice time, which has decreased in 2020-2021, and his role that does not suit him. Mikheyev had a great first season in the NHL in 2019-2020 with a 23-point performance, including 8 goals, in 39 games. He formed a great duo with team captain John Tavares. However, last year, Tavares had a huge slump, resulting in 17 points in 54 games, mainly due to the arrival of Joe Thornton and Wayne Simmonds, who took up a lot of space in the lineup.
In addition, he and Zach Hyman were in virtually the same role, leaving much less room for Mikheyev. Hyman has now left for the Edmonton Oilers and Joe Thornton has left for Florida, which may give Mikheyev an opportunity to flourish offensively.
However, I doubt the relationship between Dubas and Mikheyev will end positively, even if the 26-year-old winger's ice time swells. Good accounts make good friends as they say, but in this case it's very unclear.
Dubas is most likely in panic mode right now, because if the Leafs were to have another early exit in the playoffs, he could lose his job. You can't say he hasn't tried to improve his team over the years, but he should at least have a modicum of respect for his players. Maybe Mikheyev will come back with his head held high, but it could also be that he doesn't want to be part of this organization anymore, due to the lack of consideration from Dubas.
