Soshnikov was with the Marlies and, as you may have heard, has a clause in his contract that said if he isn’t on the Leafs by the middle of November, he can bolt to the KHL. Not wanting to lose a decent enough prospect for nothing, the Leafs have recalled him.
The problem? He doesn’t deserve it. The Leafs have Kasperi Kapanen wasting away in the minors, and on their big league roster, they have Josh Leivo wasting away in the press box.
Furthermore, for every game this season in which they’ve dressed a healthy lineup, they’ve had either Connor Brown or Mitch Marner on the fourth line, which is not optimal, to say the least.