2 Trades that Would Fix the Toronto Maple Leafs
The NHL trade deadline is just over a month away and the Toronto Maple Leafs have a couple of holes to fill in their line up, if they wish to be serious Stanley Cup contenders. They have been wildly inconsistent this season due to below-average defensive play.
According to many insiders such as Elliotte Freidman, the Toronto Maple Leafs are interested in trading for Calgary Flames defenseman, Chris Tanev.
Brad Treliving has a history with Tanev being the former GM of the Calgary Flames but with Tanev on an expiring contract and in his mid 30s, I don't believe it would be smart to acquire him, even if you were to extend him on a one or multi-year deal.
They already have a slow enough blue line with the likes of TJ Brodie, Simon Benoit and Mark Giordano, there is no need to add to that with an immobile Chris Tanev.
One defenseman that Treliving should be interested in is Tanev's teammate, Noah Hanifin. Hanifin is also on an expiring deal and is expected to get a large pay raise come July 1st.
It was reported back in November that Hanifin and the Flames were closing in on an eight-year extension at 7.5M AAV, but he wanted to see the direction of the Flames before signing the contract. He could be the #2 defenseman the Maple Leafs have been looking for, for years.
Noah Hanifin Trade
The Toronto Maple Leafs top trade target should be Noah Hannifin, who is the best defenesman on the Calgary Flames, as opposed to Chris Tanev, who is the 4th best.
Dmitri Orlov was the best defenseman available at last year's trade deadline and the Boston Bruins acquired him and Garnett Hathaway for a 1st, 2nd and 3rd round pick and bottom-six forward Craig Smith. Hanifin is arguably the best defenseman available on the trade market, so Treliving will have to pay a hefty price to acquire him.
The Maple Leafs could trade their 1st round pick this year (2024), New York Islanders 3rd round pick (2024), Mikko Kokkonen and David Kampf for Noah Hanifin (48% retained).
That might not be enough, but it's a start. If the price is higher, the Leafs should pay it because they desperately need help at the top of their lineup.
Acquiring Hanfin would make the Maple Leafs a lot better than they are today, and unlike Tanev, there is at least a good possibility that Hanifin would have a major impact on the lineup.
Although Hanifin makes the Maple Leafs blue line much better, they still need another top 4 defensemen in order to make a deep run in the playoffs.
Minnesota Wild Trade
The Minnesota Wild have had a disappointing season and will most likely be sellers at this years trade deadline.
Jake Middleton has been a great player for them since being acquired in 2022 from the San Jose Sharks.
The Leafs were rumoured to be interested in Middleton back in 2022 before acquiring Mark Giordano from the Seattle Kraken.
Middleton is your typical stay at home defenseman but has added some offence to his game this year playing on the top pair with rookie Brock Faber. He has 7 goals and 11 assists through 49 games, already passing his career-high of 15 points in 79 games last year. Middleton stands at 6'3, 219 lbs, rarely gives away the puck and is a presence in front of his own net.
He is the perfect player to play alongside Morgan Rielly on the top pair with the play of TJ Brodie falling off this season. He is also making less than half of what TJ Brodie is, at 2.45M, this season and next.
Marcus Johansson could also be an intriguing addition to the team to play in the middle 6, making just 2M this season and next.
So what should the Maple Leafs trade for two players with an additional year on their deals?
McCabe, Lafferty 2.0
Last season, former Maple Leafs GM Kyle Dubas made a similar trade for Jake McCabe, Sam Lafferty, and a couple of conditional draft picks. In doing so he gave up a conditional 1st in 2025, 2nd in 2026, Pavel Gogolev and Joey Anderson.
The Leafs would not need Minnesota to retain money on either player if they traded TJ Brodie along with other assets to acquire them. That should make the value of this trade less than that of last season.
Johansson's play is comparable to Nino Neiderrieter who was traded last year from Nashville to Winnipeg for 2nd round pick in 2024. The Leafs do not have a 2nd round pick until 2027 so they would have to trade a prospect with the equivalent value. Ty Voit?
Proposed trade: Leafs acquire Jake Middleton and Marcus Johansson for TJ Brodie, 1st in 2026, Ty Voit and Nick Abruzzese.
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After the two potential trades with Calgary and Minnesota Toronto fills three holes in their lineup by acquiring two, top 4 defensemen, one of whom is signed through next season, unlike TJ Brodie. They also acquire Marcus Johansson who can play up and down the lineup if Tyler Bertuzzi and Matthews Knies can not figure it out on their respective lines.