- Toronto traded goalie Joseph Woll and defenseman Simon Benoit to Philadelphia
- The Leafs got back goalie Samuel Ersson, defenseman Emil Andrae and a 2026 third-round pick
- Read below for what the swap means for both crease situations
John Chayka wasted no time making his first trade as Maple Leafs general manager.
Toronto sent goaltender Joseph Woll and defenseman Simon Benoit to the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday. The Leafs got back goalie Samuel Ersson, defenseman Emil Andrae and a third-round pick in the 2026 draft.
The Flyers confirmed the deal minutes later.
Woll is the headliner. The 27-year-old came up through Toronto’s system after the Leafs drafted him 62nd overall in 2016, and he handled big playoff minutes for them the last two springs.
This past season went sideways. Woll went 15-16-7 with a 3.34 goals-against average and a .899 save percentage across 39 games, all career worsts. Toronto allowed the second-most goals per game in the league at 3.60 and missed the playoffs for the first time in a decade.
He still has two years left on the three-year, $10.98 million contract he signed in July 2024. That $3.67 million cap hit now belongs to Philadelphia, where Woll projects as the backup behind Daniel Vladar.
Benoit gives the Flyers a steady bottom-pairing defender. He put up six assists in 73 games this year and has one season left at a $1.35 million cap hit.
Ersson walks into a Toronto crease that’s wide open after a miserable year. Andrae, 23, brings a puck-moving option to the blue line, and the third-rounder hands Chayka another chip to work with.
This is the opening move of what looks like a busy summer in Toronto. The Leafs have already been linked to moving Morgan Rielly, and Chayka has plenty of work ahead after a lost season.
