The Toronto Maple Leafs and Columbus Blue Jackets will both kick off their 2026-27 seasons this week. Prior to the start of the year, the Blue Jackets traded away Kirill Marchenko, sending him to the Maple Leafs.

The major piece the Blue Jackets got back in return for Marchenko was Matthew Knies. Knies had spent his entire career with the Leafs, playing 240 games since breaking into the NHL in 2022-23. Now, the former Maple Leaf is speaking out about what he will remember from his time with the franchise, per Mark Scheig of The Hockey Writers.

“I'll remember the guys, obviously. I love the group of guys we had here. There's a lot of guys I can mention that helped me kind of get to where I am now, and a lot of veteran players that it was easy to follow with. But yeah, it was a fun time playing here. It was a crazy hockey city and exciting,” Knies noted. “But again, I'm fired up to go to Columbus and get a fresh start and a breath of fresh air and not have to worry about all that kind of crap over my head for all those trade stuff. And just kind of focus on hockey and focus on the guys in the room and try and win.”

Article Continues Below

Knies is expected to slot into the top line for the Blue Jackets, joining Adam Fantilli and Kent Johnson on the top unit. He is also looking to repeat his output from last year. He is coming off a 23-goal, 43-assist season, setting a career high for both assists and points.

The Blue Jackets open their season on Thursday night, hosting the Buffalo Sabres.