Ranking the Top 5 Biggest Toronto Maple Leafs Trades of the Decade

2. Frederik Andersen for Picks

On June 20, 2016, the Toronto Maple Leafs pulled the trigger on who they identified as the goalie of the future.

General manager Lou Lamoriello was willing to give the Anaheim Ducks a 2016 first-round and a 2017 second-round pick to acquire Frederik Andersen.

Prior to Andersen, coach Mike Babcock didn’t have a clear starter.

He spent the previous season, 2015-16, splitting time between stoppers Jonathan Bernier and James Reimer.

Bernier played 38 games and Reimer 32 that year. Garrett Sparks also took to the crease in 17 games that season. When Andersen arrived, there was no longer any question about who was the Toronto Maple Leafs primary goalie.

The Ducks at this point had identified John Gibson as their go-to starter and as such were shopping Andersen.

The Leafs were happy to get him as he solidified himself as the best stopper the franchise has had this decade.

Gibson has gone on to play seven years with the Ducks and is still their number one goaltender. He started 257 games in that time and earned 131 wins. In Andersen’s seven years in the NHL, he has 203 wins in 337 games started.

The Leafs 2016 draft pick was used by Anaheim to get center Sam Steel and the Ducks turned the 2017 second-round pick into left-winger Maxime Comtois.

Meanwhile, Andersen spent four years of the decade with the Toronto Maple Leafs, playing 224 games and accruing a .917 save percentage with a 2.74 goals-against average.

Now, as one of the most heavily used goaltenders in the league, Andersen is a key member of the current Leafs roster.

He has even received his first All-Star Game nod this season. The Buds hope that Andersen will help the team achieve greater future playoff success than they had throughout the decade.