#1. Trade Pick For NHL Player
A first-round pick is one of the best trade assets an NHL team possesses, so expect the Leafs to trade the pick for an NHL player. There have been rumors about the Leafs trading this pick for weeks, ever since they acquired it from Pittsburgh.
The Leafs are in win-now mode, which means they can sacrifice their first-round selection. If this means they’re able to acquire a right-handed defenseman, then they should probably roll the dice.
No matter who that 15th overall selection turns into, the Leafs should trade the pick if it means upgrading their team today. It’s so hard to make trades in the NHL nowadays, and it’s just as hard to trade for a defenseman, so if they have to part ways with their first-rounder, so be it.
But what type of defenseman would a first-round pick get you? Could you get Josh Manson from Anaheim? Matt Dumba from Minnesota? Adam Larsson in Edmonton?
I doubt Pittsburgh would want to part ways with Kris Letang, but maybe returning their first-round pick for Letang could be part of a package to move him to Toronto. I have no idea what type of package the Leafs could get, but I do know that they should entertain it. Teams start to get very desperate on Draft night and it’s the one time of the year that you can make a real hockey deal, because you have time to figure out your salary cap in the off-season.
If the Toronto Maple Leafs trade their first-round pick for a quality defenseman, that would be amazing, but either way the team is in a great spot holding the 15th overall pick.