Nothing is going right for the Toronto Maple Leafs. They are 1-7-0 through their last eight games, a whole lot of players are injured (that might be a contributing factor to them piling up the losses), and the feeling around the team is horrible.
That doesn't stop general manager John Chayka from picking up his phone and trying to improve this team.
The most obvious need is an impactful defenseman. Even if everyone is healthy, the team can't rely on newcomer Darren Raddysh to suddenly be a No. 1 blueliner and for Morgan Rielly to carry the load offensively like he has been through this season so far, before he got hurt. Jake McCabe is a perfectly serviceable middle-pairing guy, but he's playing too high up the lineup. Chris Tanev might be on his last legs, and then the Leafs are relying on Oliver Ekman-Larsson and his group of small blueliners next to him to make a difference.
There is just not nearly enough talent on that Leafs blue line. Thankfully, Chayka is looking to make a significant addition.
John Chayka is looking to upgrade the Leafs' blue line
On Thursday's edition of Insider Trading on TSN, NHL insider Pierre LeBrun covered just what the Maple Leafs are looking to do when it comes to trades in the near future.
"John Chayka, the GM of the Leafs, according to what I’m hearing from other teams around the league, continues to make calls about trying to upgrade the blue line in a real way, not in a Band-Aid way and not in a patchwork way,” LeBrun said. “If the Leafs make the kind of trade they wanna make between now and March 1st, it’s for a meaningful upgrade on the blue line that is beyond just this year that fits in with this core and helps this team moving forward.”
The Leafs aren't looking for something that will be a short-term fix. Chayka could ring up the Philadelphia Flyers and send a second-round pick their way for Rasmus Ristolainen tomorrow and have a much better blue line, but he's 32 years old and is a pending unrestricted free agent. That would end up being a draft pick wasted just to try and salvage a bit of this season.
Instead, Chayka is eyeing up the actual difference-making defensemen and seeing if he can pry any away from their current team.
The Leafs might just be looking for their second Kirill Marchenko trade, but this time get a defenseman instead.
It might take some extra circumstances, though. Is there a young blueliner who isn't going to re-sign with his current team and could be had for a different player locked up long-term? Is there a star defenseman who might be on the older side but still has several years remaining of being a bona fide No. 1 defenseman -- something the Leafs haven't had in decades?
There are big name who could be on the move if their team wanted them to be. Quinn Hughes appears to be staying in Minnesota until he hits free agency this summer (and signs for the New Jersey Devils). Zach Werenski is a situation worth monitoring, and the Leafs have already been linked to him. Maybe someone like an Alexander Nikishin could eventually be acquired. Or, they take a very bad team's best defenseman and hopefully don't wreck their season.
It's a very interesting spot to be in. The Leafs also don't have much to send out in a trade other than their handful of notable prospects and the Colorado Avalanche's first-round pick that they have from the Nicolas Roy trade. Can they make a blockbuster with that? Probably not.
Maybe an actual high-end player on the current roster has to be dealt to address the blue line. It's all a mystery right now but John Chayka is looking for a deal and knows what this team's biggest problem is.
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