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4 Targets for the Toronto Maple Leafs on Trade Deadline Day

By Spencer Teixeira

BUFFALO, NY - NOVEMBER 19: Alex Stalock #32 of the Minnesota Wild clears the puck alongside Jonas Brodin #25 during an NHL game against the Buffalo Sabres on November 19, 2019 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Bill Wippert/NHLI via Getty Images)
BUFFALO, NY - NOVEMBER 19: Alex Stalock #32 of the Minnesota Wild clears the puck alongside Jonas Brodin #25 during an NHL game against the Buffalo Sabres on November 19, 2019 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, New York. (Photo by Bill Wippert/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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ST PAUL, MINNESOTA – OCTOBER 20: Jonas Brodin #25 of the Minnesota Wild controls the puck against Jonathan Drouin #92 of the Montreal Canadiens during the game at Xcel Energy Center on October 20, 2019 in St Paul, Minnesota. The Wild defeated the Canadiens 4-3. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
ST PAUL, MINNESOTA – OCTOBER 20: Jonas Brodin #25 of the Minnesota Wild controls the puck against Jonathan Drouin #92 of the Montreal Canadiens during the game at Xcel Energy Center on October 20, 2019 in St Paul, Minnesota. The Wild defeated the Canadiens 4-3. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /

Jonas Brodin

First up is Minnesota Wild defenseman Jonas Brodin. A 26 year-old LHD hailing from Karlstad, Sweden, Brodin brings a lot to desirable traits in his eighth NHL season.

Though 49 games with Minnesota this season, Brodin has 19 assists and 20 points (0.41 P/GP, on pace for career high 33 points), and has some favourable advanced statistics as well.(All stats naturalstattrick.com).

Despite starting the majority (56.1 %) of his shifts in the defensive-zone, Brodin averages a 47.1 CF% (which is understandable given his role and the team he is on, albeit still not ideal) and maintains a slightly inflated 103.4 PDO rating (career average is 100.8, which is actually quite good.) all while playing an average of 21:19 of TOI per game.

Although I do believe that Brodin would be a solid addition to the Leafs, we must be careful in terms of what we give up, as Brodin is on pace to have just the second healthy season of his career, while scoring at a career rate, with mediocre baseline analytics and an inflated PDO.

That being said, despite all of these risks, he is a much more dependable option on the backend than Cody Ceci or Martin Marincin (who are, to their credit, depth defenders forced into big minutes due to injuries).

Currently, the Wild sit last in the central division, but still have a respectable 22-21-6 record. That being said, they are greatly exceeding expectations, as many projected them to be significantly below .500 and be aggressive sellers. So far, the Wild have made no moves but probably should be making some major deals in the next coming weeks, one of which will hopefully be Brodin to the leafs.

In terms of an actual trade, I would expect the asking price to be rather high, considering the inflated stats and the fact that Brodin’s contract (six years, $4.16M AAV) extends through next season. That being said, the Leafs have assets, and probably should be looking to use some.

Off the top of my head, a rough proposal that seems fair for both sides is:

To Minnesota:

*Can become a 2020 2nd round selection if the Toronto Maple Leafs enter the 2020 draft lottery (receive pick back from CAR)

To Toronto:

  • LD Jonas Brodin (26 y/o, 20P-49GP, 2YL @ $4.16M)
  • 2021 4th round pick*

*Can become a 2021 3rd round pick if Jeremy Bracco plays more than nine games for the Wild in the 2020-21 NHL season.

***Full Disclaimer: This is just my opinion on what a fair trade looks like. feel free to  call me crazy OR add your own down in the comments :)*** 

(Leafs save $333K -> $7.931M in space)

In this potential deal, the Toronto Maple Leafs give up a depth defenseman in Cody Ceci, a legitimate forward prospect in Jeremy Bracco, a wildcard goalie prospect in Zachary Bouthillier.

Ceci, a player surrounded by a lot of stigma in Leafs Nation, is actually a decent NHL player in a depth role, but simply takes up too much of the Leafs’ cap to be a worthwhile investment for Toronto.

In Minnesota however, Ceci could blossom (he’s 26 so it’s really a coin flip at this point) into a useful full-time NHL player, as he would be going to a team with significantly less media and organizational pressure.

As for Bracco, this deal would be finding the best case scenario for all parties involved. The Wild would be receiving a legitimate NHL talent who will likely take a roster spot come training camp, Bracco gets out of Toronto (per his request, via Elliotte Friedman), and the Toronto Maple Leafs allow for a player to continue their career without tension in the organization.

Bracco is purely an offensive threat in my opinion, a power play specialist who can carry a unit. Bracco possesses very advanced playmaking tendencies that really make him a standout producer at the AHL level.

In terms of Bouthillier, there isn’t too much to say here that I have’t said before.
Bouthillier is currently having the best season of his QMJHL career (0.898 SV%), which is admittedly poor, but at 6’2″ he has an NHL-comparable frame and that’s about it. It’s magic beans at this point, but it’d be foolish to say that he has no upside or value.

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