Maple Leafs flip Samuel Ersson rights to Senators, getting a 2027 fifth-round pick

Toronto acquired goaltender Samuel Ersson’s rights from Philadelphia and then traded those rights to Ottawa 10 days later, in exchange for a future draft choice.

By The Apex Times Newsroom2 min readAI-assisted Apex article

The Toronto Maple Leafs traded away the rights to goaltender Samuel Ersson to the Ottawa Senators on Friday, just 10 days after Toronto acquired those rights from the Philadelphia Flyers. The move, according to the report, sent Ersson’s rights to Ottawa in return for a 2027 fifth-round draft pick.

In NHL roster-building terms, a trade of “rights” typically indicates a negotiation timeline rather than an immediate arrival to the crease. Players whose rights are moved are still subject to the same end-of-deadline and signing dynamics that determine whether and when a team can ultimately secure the goaltender’s services. In this case, Toronto’s quick turnaround suggests the Leafs evaluated the value of holding those rights versus converting them into draft capital.

The Flyers had previously held the asset that Toronto acquired, meaning the sequence created a short-lived third stop for the goaltender’s negotiating status. Toronto then converted the rights again, flipping the asset to Ottawa while keeping the outcome in the draft-pick column, not the goalie slot column.

From Ottawa’s perspective, acquiring the rights creates a window to pursue Ersson as a potential goaltending option within its own organization plan. The Senators’ willingness to give up a 2027 fifth for those rights indicates they saw enough fit or upside to pursue negotiations rather than leaving the asset solely in Toronto’s hands.

For Toronto, trading a rights asset quickly can be read as pragmatic cap-and-asset management, especially when draft selections are also part of longer-term roster construction. A fifth-round pick is not a guaranteed immediate impact, but it is a concrete resource the Leafs can point to when balancing present needs with future depth.

What to watch next is whether Ottawa and Ersson move from rights ownership to an agreement. If a deal is reached, the focus will shift from “rights” to actual playing opportunity and development. If no agreement follows, the trade will mostly function as a way to relocate negotiation control rather than to immediately change the starting goaltending picture.

Why It Matters

The trade can shape how both franchises pursue their goaltending plans, at least from a negotiation and asset-control standpoint.
Toronto’s quick conversion of rights into a 2027 pick reflects a roster-building approach that prioritizes draft capital value.
Ottawa gains leverage to pursue a goaltender without needing to acquire the asset again later in the process.
The outcome will hinge on whether the rights turn into an agreement, which will determine whether this becomes a future crease addition or a draft-only asset shuffle.

Sources

Key Facts

The Maple Leafs traded the rights to goaltender Samuel Ersson to the Ottawa Senators on Friday.
Toronto’s trade with Ottawa came 10 days after the Maple Leafs acquired Ersson’s rights from the Philadelphia Flyers.
Ottawa received Ersson’s rights in exchange for a 2027 fifth-round draft pick.
The report frames the deal as a “flip,” moving an asset Toronto obtained and then re-traded quickly.
The transaction concerns rights, not an immediate NHL roster assignment.