10 (Mostly) Elite Defensemen the Toronto Maple Leafs Could Trade For

The Toronto Maple Leafs cannot possibly think they can win a Stanley Cup with their current blue-line.

In fact, the Toronto Maple Leafs summer plans were extremely confusing for anyone who saw Jake McCabe play against Florida last spring.

The Leafs got a new GM, let their two toughest defenders walk (Justin Holl and Luke Schenn) and replaced them with John Klingberg, a player who is a) not tough at all b) in decline c) three or four years removed from being a good top four player.

They then inserted him into their top four, and didn’t bother to add any toughness or depth at all for the rest of the summer.

It was – to say the least – a confusing move.

The Leafs depth, such as it is, consists of Connor Timmins a 25 year-old extreme longshot to ever become an NHL regular, and Simon Benoit, arguably the single worst player in the NHL last season.

To make matters worse, five of the Toronto Maple Leafs six regular defenders are over 30, and one is the over 40 and happens to be the NHL’s oldest player.

And he happens to also be coming off an absolutely terrible playoff performance.

The Leafs best defender is Morgan Rielly, a 30 year-old former elite player who is still very good but who pretty much no one would consider to be a top 20 defenseman in the NHL.

And it’s extremely hard, if not impossible, to win without one of the 20 best defenseman in the world on your roster.

The Leafs blue-line has no elite players and very little depth. They also lack players with upside.

So clearly, a trade is in order. (All stats naturalstattrick.com).

Will the Leafs package young players and picks for a defenseman, or will they move their chips into the middle and trade William Nylander for an elite defender who can perhaps put them over the top?

Here is a list of ten defenseman the Leafs could pursue.

Top 10 Defenseman the Toronto Maple Leafs Could Trade For

1. MacKenzie Weegar

Weegar shoots right, he’s 6′ 206 LBS, and he is the rare former 7th rounder who become an NHL star.

The Calgary Flames are a bad team, and they are well stocked with terrible contracts, meaning that they may be desperate to get out of them.

The Toronto Maple Leafs clearly have interest in Nikita Zadorov and Chris Tanev, but they really should shoot higher.

Weegar is the Flames best defenseman, and the Flames situation + his long contract through what is likely a long rebuilding phase means that he would be free to any team willing to take on the deal.

At worst, you could get a high-end player for dirt cheap.

Weegar is in the first year of a  brutal (at least for a team staring down multiple years at the bottom of the standings) eight-year deal signed by, who else, Brad Treliving.

It does make sense that Calgary would want out of and obviously it makes sense that Weegar would waive to go to a contender, and to the team now ran by the guy who talked him into staying in Calgary.

The thing is, he only has a $6.25 cap-hit, it’s really the length and the no-trade protection that is concerning.  (all cap info capfriendly.com).

The Leafs could fit him in by subtracting Klingberg and Jarnkrok.  The cost of a first rounder would probably get the deal done, since the Flames really have no use for a player whose prime will be long gone by the time they are good again.

Currently, Weegar has a 54% xGoals Percentage, and last year he  he was at 58% and he was at 57% both the years before that.  Those are elite numbers, and did I mention he’s right handed?

Weegar would instantly become the Toronto Maple Leafs best defenseman, and with T.J Brodie in a heavy decline and gone after this season, it would really only be a raise of just over a million dollars to get several years younger and much better from your top pairing right-side defenseman.

Weegar checks all the boxes: he’s an elite player, he is right handed, he can play top pairing vs top competition and succeed, and he’s in his prime.

As far as I can tell, he should be the Leafs top trade target since he is probably the best you can get without moving Nylander.

2. Bowen Byram

The Colorado Avalanche have a great blue-line and a mediocre group of forwards after their two superstars.

Theoretically, at least, they would be interested in replacing Gabriel Landeskog’s presence among their forwards.

This is why, this past summer, I thought a Nylander for Byram trade would be great for both teams.

Even though Nylander is playing great, I really don’t think he’s playing that much better than usual, and even if he is, it’s likely not sustainable for him to be a top-of-the-NHL scorer.

As hard as it is to walk away from players at their peak, it’s also the best time to trade them.

It’s hard to see Nylander ever having more value, and it’s hard to see a better player in the NHL to trade him for besides Byramm, who seems extremely likely to be a number-one defenseman eventually.

Now of course this all depends on Byram’s health, as he has a history of injury.  I would leave it up to the Leafs doctors to decide if this is a smart move, but assuming that he’s not any more prone to a career ending injury than anyone else, it’s a move I’d explore if I was running the Toronto Maple Leafs. (You can enter the joke about how you’re glad I’m not here ______).

The 22 year old former 4th overall player is currently putting up solid numbers on the Avalanche, posting a 54% Expected Goals Percentage, while being paired with Samuel Girard on the Av’s second pairing.

His 24 points in a half season last year suggest an elite scorer, and he can hit, defend and, most importantly, is still young enough to get better.

A 22 year-old as good as Byram is about the exact thing the Toronto Maple Leafs need. With Morgan Rielly already in the fold he wouldn’t have to play on the top pairing just yet, and he’d be a massive improvement over McCabe.

Health permitting, a Nylander for Byram swap makes sense for both teams.  It’s risky, but great rewards require risk.

The upside of having a 22 year old, potentially elite, much cheaper, five-years-younger player who plays a premium position and who would save the team a fortune, and the fact that you could acquire him by trading a strength for a weakness makes this at least worth exploring.

3. Seth Jones

At one time, Seth Jones was the NHL’s most overrated player.

He is still pretty overrated.

He is also 29, and signed until 2030.

He also has a full NTC and makes almost $10 million per year.

That said, should the rebuilding Blackhawks want out of the deal, which has to be among the NHL’s worst ever handed out, and should they be willing to eat some money, this could be a really good addition to the Toronto Maple Leafs.

It’s got everything I like about a trade: It’s unrealistic, it’s probably not going to happen, and it would be insanely risky if it did.

Still, if you want to compete in a salary-cap league, you’ve got to look for value in other team’s errors.

Seth Jones at $10 million is horrendous.

But Seth Jones with some of that money retained, and acquired at a discount, could be an excellent source of value.

It’s also possible for a player like this to struggle because they get put in a situation they can’t handle.  Since the Leafs didn’t sign him, they might be more inclined to use him on the second pairing where a) he’s never really played and b) he might be much, much better.

It’s a long-shot, probably even a no-shot, but they don’t just give away elite defenders, if you want to get one without drafting one, you likely have to overpay or take a massive risk.

4. Chris Tanev

For the record, this list isn’t meant to be a ranking.  I don’t think you can compare Tanev to getting an elite player, so keep in mind this is just a list and it’s written out in the order I wrote the players down.

Tanev may not be elite overall, but he has been an elite defensive player for years.

He’s 33, but apparently he’s still doing well.

He is winning his minutes and posting great numbers on the Calgary Flames, even though they are a terrible hockey team.

He is old though.

And he makes almost $4 million.

He would be a great upgrade over what most of what the Leafs are dressing, but they are also in need for an elite number-one (or at least number-two) top-pairing defenseman.

Tanev is most definitely not that.

But he would help the Leafs.  He shoots right, and he would be an improvement over both Klingberg and the guy he replaced, the criminally  underrated Justin Holl.

In fact, you could probably pair him with Morgan Rielly on the top pairing and he’d likely be better than TJ Brodie at this point. It’s not, however,  a long-term solution, and it would likely cost too much.

The weird thing about the NHL is that you can often get star players on a discount because they have bad contracts.   In a cap-league a non-star player would is very good and who is a pending UFA is, in some ways, more desirable and thus prohibitively expensive.

Smart teams look for deals and value, but at the same time, they must keep an eye out for any way to improve their team.

Tanev might be fairly expensive for a single year of a non-elite player, but he’d also let you move Brodie to the third pairing, and run Tanev-Liljegren-Brodie down the right side.

It’s not beautiful, but it’s way better than what the Leafs have currently, and since they already have to replace McCabe, Klingberg and Giordano, keeping Brodie in a lesser role while improving the top line might make the cost worthwhile.

5. Moritz Seider

This is, almost certainly, just a fantasy – I don’t see why the Detroit Red Wings would want to trade Seider.

That said, why wouldn’t you explore every last option?

At best, Steve Yzerman is a sketchy GM, despite whatever his inflated Ken Holland-esque reputation might say to oppose that.  I feel you could probably trick him, or at least get the better of him in a trade, so it’s worth a try to heist one of the NHL’s best young defensman from one of it’s worst general managers.

At 6.3, 205 lbs, and shooting right, Seider is an ideal guy to build around because he is only 22 and has already shown flashes of brilliance.

After a 50 point rookie season, the Red Wings paired him with one of the NHL’s worst players (Ben Chiarot) and he declined spectacularly in his sophomore season.

He is due for a massive raise in the off-season, but he currently is still on an ELC and costs nothing.  That is like catnip to a contending team, and he’d cost an absolute fortune.

He is still posting fairly bad numbers across the board, and appears overmatched as a team’s top-pairing defender.  Therefore, maybe the Wings would take a huge package instead of making a huge commitment.

There is risk that he isn’t what we hope he is, but I think it’s worthwhile.

The Toronto Maple Leafs should at least ask if they would take William Nylander in exchange.

6. Noah Dobson

Noah Dobson is, like Moritz Seider, highly unlikely to be available.

Then again, Dougie Hamilton and Devon Toews were traded when they were extremely young, so it does happen.

A former 12th overall pick who is now playing as the New York Islanders #1 defenseman at the age of 23, Noah Dobson would be a dream acquisition for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Coming off a 49 point season, and a 51 point season before that, Dobson has nearly a point-per-game so far this year.

The Islanders are getting great results when he plays, but his expected goals rating is only just above 50%. Is this because the Islanders are a terrible team? Or is Dobson not good enough to be a #1?

It is almost certainly the former.

Dobson has the scoring chops of a future elite player, but will he be a truly elite top-pairing defenseman?

Maybe, who knows?

The reason the Toronto Maple Leafs should trade for him is because they don’t have anyone else who might fill that role in the future.

The cost would be William Nylander.  And probably a bit more.

Dobson is locked in for four million this year and next year.  After that, he’s going to cost $10 million, but he’ll only be 25.  This is the kind of player the Toronto Maple Leafs should risk their Nylander chip on.

He’s cheap enough that they can add elsewhere and win now, but he’s young enough that you could potentially have a franchise defenseman on your hands.

There is always going to be a risk in trading a sure thing for someone who isn’t, but the cap hit and the extra year of that cheap cap hit + the potential + the fact that you’d be trading a strength to address a weakness is probably enough to make it the right decision.

The Islanders get the star they are desperate for, the Toronto Maple Leafs get the #1 they haven’t had since Tomas Kaberle’s prime.  Of all the deals proposed here, this one is the best for the Leafs and should be their biggest target.

7. Tomas Chabot

Tomas Chabot is a good, not great player and I wouldn’t trade William Nylander for him.  In the summer I thought this was a pretty good trade, but after learning more about Chabot, and seeing Nylander get even better, I don’t think this would enough to get for Nylander.

That said, he is a lot better than what the Leafs have and, at 26 he’s got enough prime year left to worth investing in.  Maybe he even has a little bit of upside left.

The Senators have too many similar defenseman and there are five years left on Chabot’s $8 million cap-hit deal.

A no-trade clause kicks in after this season.

With Sanderson and Chychrun, it makes it likely the Senators will trade Chabot before that kicks in.

Since this season isn’t going how they want it to, they might be interested in a deal.

The Toronto Maple Leafs should have interest.  Chabot and Rielly going on-two on the left side would be pretty sweet, and while the cap hit isn’t ideal, Jarkrok and Klingberg would take care of most of it.

This isn’t my favorite idea, but since Chabot is underperforming vs his contract, and Ottawa might be somewhat desperate to move him, I think there is some potential for good value here.  Especially if you used a third team to lower his contract with some retention.

This is actually one  of my least favorite ideas on this list, but Chabot’s upside and the potential for some hidden value here might make it worthwhile.

8. Mike Matheson

Matheson is 29 years old and currently playing for the Montreal Canadiens.

Matheson is making just under $5 million and would be an upgrade over pretty much every Leafs defender save Rielly and Liljegren.

There is some risk here, because Matheson doesn’t exactly have a track record of posting great numbers, but he does seem to get  results – for the last five seasons, including this one, Matheson has won his minutes.

Maybe he hasn’t deserved to win them – his expected goals numbers aren’t great- but he has an overall positive impact over the last five seasons playing for mostly bad teams.

I think if the Leafs were to acquire a guy like Tanev to go on the top pair with Rielly, that Matheson could be a nice addition to replace Klingberg on the roster,  and he could take McCabe’s spot on the second pairing next to the eventually healthy Liljegren.

McCabe would look much nicer on the third pairing, and Brodie’s decline, which is pretty obvious on the Leafs top pairing, wouldn’t hurt the team much, if at all, on the third pairing.

I don’t love this as a major move, but if someone like Dobson isn’t an option, then a combination of Tanev and Matheson would be pretty decent.

10. Zach Werenski

Last but not least, we have Zach Werenski.

He has a full no-movement clause, and he makes almost $10 million dollars per year.

But you have to figure that the Columbus Blue-Jackets, who are just absolutely awful, would be interested in making a big move.

You also have to look at their recent moves and think you can take advantage of how stupid they are, so it’s a great scenario to try to make a trade that really helps your team.

The Toronto Maple Leafs can’t trade William Nylander for Zach Werenski straight up, because Nylander is more valuable than that.

But what else would the Leafs have to add if they wanted both Patrick Laine – the recently healthy scratched Patrick Laine, that is – and Zach Werenski?

I doubt that much, assuming Werenski would leave the worst team in the league to go to one of the best ones.

Werenski has always threatened to become an elite number-one defender, but he’s always been stuck in Columbus on horrible teams, usually with really bad coaches.

The Leafs might think they can rescue him.

Laine has three more years of an almost nine-million cap hit.

This sounds nuts, but Laine + Werenski is $18 + and the Leafs could trade Nylander along with Klingberg, Domi and Jarnkrok to more or less afford it for this year, and then figure out the rest later.

The Leafs have more than enough quality Marlies to replace what Domi and Jarnkrok bring, and Werenski would push Rielly to a better role on line two.

Laine would give the Leafs an insane group of forwards and they could use him as a weapon and not care what he does about defense, and never worry about him being the star or the main guy.

Yes it’s crazy and probably unrealistic. But it’s only unrealistic because NHL GMs have no imagination.

Werenski has put up a positive expected goals rating on the Columbus Blue Jackets in each of the last two years. Imagine how great he’d be on the Toronto Maple Leafs.

This is a trade that would put the Leafs over the top similar to when the Toronto Blue Jays traded for Roberto Alomar and Joe Carter.

No matter what happens, the Toronto Maple Leafs need to improve their blue-line, and they need to do it by getting a better player than just Nikita Zadorov.