One of the recurring themes for the Toronto Maple Leafs this upcoming season will be upgrading the roster in every area it can. One priority area was the blue line. The addition of Darren Raddysh was a great start.
But it was just that, a start.
The defense corps, including Emil Andrae, is essentially the same as last season. And while the defense should get a fully healthy Chris Tanev back, there’s no telling how well Tanev will hold up during this season’s 84-game campaign.
That’s why the Maple Leafs can’t possibly think that adding Raddysh was enough. The team needs another defenseman, preferably a right-shot. If John Chayka can manage that, it will be a massive coup for the team.
One of the names we’ve considered in previous articles is Erik Karlsson. The prevailing chatter is that the Pittsburgh Penguins aren’t keen on keeping him this season. If Karlsson is really available, and the sticker price isn’t over the top, adding the veteran blueliner would make sense.
Karlsson aside, another puck-moving, right-shot blueliner would be an ideal addition for the Leafs. It will become an even more pressing concern if Tanev can’t keep it together this season. Such a situation would force the organization to find another shutdown option to take over for Tanev.
As such, Chayka can’t believe he’s done adding. He’ll need to keep his options open, especially if the defense corps flashes warning lights early in the season.
Resurgent Rielly would help offset blue line needs
A resurgent Morgan Rielly would help offset the Maple Leafs’ most urgent blue line needs. As it stands, the Leafs need more puck-moving defensemen. The bottom line here is that, if Jim Hiller unleashes Rielly the way that Sheldon Keefe once did, Rielly could become that puck-moving defenseman the Leafs sorely need.
Yes, the club will be counting on him being a solid defensive option. But shedding the shackles that Craig Berube put on Rielly would go a long way towards addressing the needs the team has in the back end.
While a reinvigorated Rielly wouldn’t be the ultimate solution, it would buy Chayka more time to figure out other moves.
Potentially, Rielly returning to his former self while adding Karlsson could make the Maple Leafs’ blue line one of the most formidable in the league.
Of course, that’s just a supposition at this point. But it’s worth keeping in mind. Hiller seems to have more of an open mind than Berube. Hiller will be working with a much more talented lineup than the one he had in Los Angeles.
That’s why there’s reason to believe that Morgan Rielly could be a partial answer to the Maple Leafs’ needs this season.
The only way we’ll really know is when the team hits the ice in the fall.
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