Atlantic Division Trade Targets
There are three Atlantic Division teams currently not sitting in a playoff position. They are the Ottawa Senators, Montreal Canadiens, and Buffalo Sabres. Here is a look at players from those three teams that the Leafs could target in a trade.
Ottawa Senators
Jakob Chychrun
Jakob Chychrun is a 6'2" left-shooting defenseman weighing in at 220 Lbs who can play on the left or right side. This season, he has eight goals and 20 assists for 28 points in 47 games. He is averaging 22:41 minutes of ice time and has a Corsi for of 50.9%. (Stats from hockey-reference.com)
Chychrun is 25 years old and has a year left on his contract after this season. His salary cap hit is $4.6 million, so the Leafs will need to trade away some salary to make this trade work. He would be an upgrade to the Leafs top defense pairing. (Salary cap info from capfriendly.com)
Vladimir Tarasenko
Vladimir Tarasenko is a 32-year-old right-winger who is 6'1" and 228 Lbs. He has 13 goals and 20 assists for 33 points in 45 games. He is averaging 15:50 minutes of ice time this season, and his Corsi for rating is 49.3%. He has registered 44 goals and 20 assists for 64 points in 97 playoff games with a Stanley Cup win in 2019 with the St. Louis Blues.
Tarasenko would be an expensive rental as it will cost good assets to get him, plus he has a salary cap hit of $5 million. If the Leafs require the Senators to retain a percentage of his salary, the asking price will be even higher.