Matthew Knies is out of Toronto, and the Maple Leafs are taking back Marchenko, Merzlikins and Wood from Columbus.
Heading into Tuesday's home game against Montreal, the Leafs have a lot to sort out. The deal hands Blue Jackets GM Don Waddell a long-term piece and some breathing room.
Columbus gets Knies signed for another five years at $7.75 million. Steven Lorentz comes along as depth.
Emil Andrae is under contract for the next two years at $1.55 million. He can fill in for Fabbro, who will miss at least a month.
Add a 2nd-round pick that should land in the first half of the round. The deal also frees up some valuable cap space for Columbus.
Now the other side of it. Marchenko wanted to leave as a restricted free agent next summer.
Merzlikins was headed for unrestricted free agency at the end of next season and didn't want to re-sign. He was already selling his house before the trade happened.
Leafs will see Knies in Columbus colors on October 20
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Wood carries the longest commitment of the three. Columbus put him on waivers because he wasn't going to crack the lineup, and he still has three years left on his contract.
Toronto takes on three players with very different timelines and sends out Knies, Lorentz, Andrae and a 2nd-round pick.
Think of it as swapping one long lease for a handful of shorter rentals. What the Leafs build with those names matters more than the swap itself.
Neither team is coming off a slide. Toronto is riding a two-game winning streak after a 4-2 win in Ottawa, while Columbus carries a 3-1-0 mark over its last 10.
Columbus won't wait long to show off the return. Toronto visits on October 20, then hosts the Blue Jackets on November 21 and again on February 8.
Jim Hiller, in the job since June 17, now has three new names to fit into a locker room that just lost Knies.
It's a big shake-up, and it'll take a few weeks to see how it settles. Let's see what the future holds.
Did the Leafs make the right call trading Knies to Columbus?
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