NHL Trade Rumors: Toronto Maple Leafs' Marc-Andre Fleury pursuit was ''vetoed'' by team President Brendan Shanahan 

According to a recent report, a certain arrangement that could have sorted the Toronto Maple Leafs’ goaltending woes for years to come had encountered an obstacle.

Based on the information provided in The Bob McCown Podcast by John Shannon, the Maple Leafs had a clear deal to get Marc-Andre Fleury from the Chicago Blackhawks in 2022. However, this fell apart as the team’s president and a former Canadian professional hockey player Brendan Shanahan reportedly vetoed the trade.

As per the details disclosed by Shannon, the deal involved sending Brandon Hagel and Fleury to the Maple Leafs in exchange for Petr Mrazek, Matthew Knies and a package of "first-round picks," as outlined by TSN's Darren Dreger.

John Shannon said:

"Kyle Dubas had a deal in place to acquire Marc-Andre Fleury. It was done. It was a done deal. They could've had Marc-Andre Fleury from Chicago before he got traded to Minnesota, and Brendan vetoed it..."

The deal seemed imminent, with General Manager Kyle Dubas finalizing details, but this required the approval of Shanahan, who ultimately decided against it.

"But there was a deal in place, and they just needed the rubber stamp endorsement from the president of the Toronto Maple Leafs for it to occur, and it did not occur."

During his post-trade deadline availability, Dubas addressed the situation, pointing fingers at Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson for the revelation. Dubas remarked:

"I'm disappointed that that conversation is public. I've never had that before where these specifics like that have been made public, and I think, frankly, it's probably a conversation to ask Kyle Davidson on his availability in Chicago."

Davidson responded that he wanted to discuss the matter privately with Dubas, but no further updates were disclosed to the media.

As fate would have it, Fleury went on to join the Minnesota Wild, and Toronto, despite missing out on the player's acquisition, continued with several roster changes.

Matthews' hat trick helped Toronto Maple Leafs win 4-3

Auston Matthews led the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 4-3 comeback victory against the Calgary Flames, securing a hat trick and boosting his NHL-leading goal tally to 37, with an additional assist.

The Maple Leafs ended a four-game skid, improving to 22-13-8. Matthews praised the team's confidence and aggressive play in the third period, and Mitch Marner and goaltender Martin Jones played key roles.

Despite goals from Yegor Sharangovich, Nazem Kadri, and Andrew Mangiapane for Calgary, the Leafs capitalized on the Flames' turnovers. Matthews' pivotal goals included a response after the Flames missed a breakaway opportunity.