Is it only me who thought Dzingle could actually be good in Toronto (ala Galachenyuk) and this could be an actual loss for Toronto, even if it's a small one
It definitely is a loss for Toronto.
If he had cleared through waivers, the Leafs would have had a centre they can call up in case of injury.
I'd argue that overall, he probably brings something
similar in calibre to what the Leafs currently have on their 4th line in Engvall/Spezza/Simmonds.
Ultimately though, they were faced with a somewhat difficult task / challenge. Either you k
Option 1 was keep Dzingel, maybe play him, accrue 0 cap space, and if you want to add a forward on top of Dzingel, and he's playing at all reasonably well, you're guaranteed to lose him on waivers as the team will not have enough space to carry 14F.
Option 2 was to try and sneak him through on waivers, and then you've got a guy you can call up if / when you have injuries up front.
I suspect the Leafs view/viewed Dzingel as the team's ideal 13th forward today, and 14th forward post-deadline, so wanted to position themselves for that.
Quite simple really,
Should’ve just sent Liljegren down to the minors then when Toronto is able to deal Dermott or Holl bring him back up.
Or better yet, waive Dermott.
In hindsight, yes you can certainly make the case that he should have kept Dzingel and run with 13f / 7d, and Liljegren in the minors.
There is problem with that approach -- it would not allow the Leafs to accrue any cap space over the next month (as they can do if they run with 12f/7d), and if he's playing at all well, you're almost guaranteed to lose him at the deadline if you want to add further. I think the Leafs looked at it as -- "We'd rather never have had, then to have him for the next couple weeks, but then lose him".