No. 3: Alex Goligoski
The Toronto Maple Leafs left-side of their defense is set nicely with Morgan Rielly, Jake Muzzin and Rasmus Sandin, but Goligoski could be a better fit as the third-pairing defenseman than Sandin.
This wouldn’t take Sandin out of the lineup, but instead, he could play the right-side, which is something he’s done in the past. Sandin proved that he deserves to be an everyday NHLer, but also showed his rookie mistakes. As a result, playing the right-side with another veteran could be beneficial.
Although Goligoski is aging, one of the reasons he could be a great fit in Toronto is his powerplay ability. One of Goligoski’s biggest strengths is running a powerplay, as he once scored seven PP goals in a single season. (stats: hockeyreference.com)
Having played with the Arizona Coyotes for a few years, Goligoski has yet to have the same talent that he did during his prime with the Pittsburgh Penguins. If he were to join the Leafs, he could be a great threat at the point and someone who could help move the puck around to create offense.
You wouldn’t want Goligoski to play much more than 12-15 minutes per night, but his help on the powerplay could be worth signing him.