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4 UFA Defenseman Toronto Maple Leafs Should Target

By Stephen Nixon

MONTREAL, QC - MAY 24: Goaltender Jack Campbell #36 of the Toronto Maple Leafs defends his net with the help of his teammates Justin Holl #3 and Rasmus Sandin #38 against Corey Perry #94 and Paul Byron #41 of the Montreal Canadiens during the second period in Game Three of the First Round of the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Bell Centre on May 24, 2021 in Montreal, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QC - MAY 24: Goaltender Jack Campbell #36 of the Toronto Maple Leafs defends his net with the help of his teammates Justin Holl #3 and Rasmus Sandin #38 against Corey Perry #94 and Paul Byron #41 of the Montreal Canadiens during the second period in Game Three of the First Round of the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs at the Bell Centre on May 24, 2021 in Montreal, Canada. (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images) /
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Toronto Maple Leafs
MONTREAL, QC – MAY 24: Goaltender Jack Campbell #36 of the Toronto Maple Leafs  (Photo by Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images) /

The Toronto Maple Leafs could benefit from adding another defenseman this offseason.

Although the Toronto Maple Leafs defense was much improved last year, there’s no reason they shouldn’t look to upgrade it. Especially, if they lose Justin Holl in the Expansion Draft.

If Holl goes to Seattle, that’ll leave the team with only four legitimate NHL defenseman under contract. Morgan Rielly, Jake Muzzin, T.J. Brodie and Rasmus Sandin are all set to be in the top-six next year, while many fans hope that Timothy Liljegren can make a jump to become an everyday player. If Holl stays and Liljegren is a top-six calibre defenseman, your defensive issues are solved.

You may want to bring in a veteran defenseman, similar to Zach Bogosian, to help support the defense, but for the most part, you’re set. However, I’m still not sure about Liljegren and I think the organization feels similar.

After getting drafted in 2017, he still hasn’t established himself as an everyday player. Maybe this is his year to do it, but we’ll have to wait until training camp to figure that out. In the meantime, the Leafs should be looking at the free agency market to find another blue-liner to fill the gap of losing Travis Dermott, Zach Bogosian and potentially Justin Holl.

Running the exact same defensive-core back for another season wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world, but if there is someone else available on a cheap contract, the Leafs should explore it. Here are four defenseman that the Toronto Maple Leafs should pursue.

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