Scott Laughton, C/W, 2yrs x $3 million
Scott Laughton is a player who has seemingly been on the trade block since his deal was signed in 2021 with the Philadelphia Flyers. As the Flyers sit firmly outside of the playoff picture, they seem poised to be sellers this year, having already dealt Morgan Frost and Joel Farabee, now should be the time to cash in on Laughton.
He is a 30-year old center/winger who plays a hard-nosed style of hockey and has one year remaining on his contract after this season, carrying a reasonable $3 million AAV. Laughton is an OK and unexciting addition.
Laughton is a heavy forechecker who may not be the main driver of play and his scoring puts him on pace for roughly 35 points a season. Despite this, he does provide value, playing a prominent role on a Flyers penalty kill that has historically been good. His style would also lend itself well to playoff hockey despite him having a very small track record in the postseason. As such, I would be interested in Laughton to fill a third-line center role for the right price but would be wary of spending big assets on a player that is not a big needle mover.
Ryan O'Reilly, C, 3yrs x $4.5 million
When former Leafs GM Kyle Dubas acquired Ryan O'Reilly from the St. Louis Blues a couple seasons ago, he was the perfect fit and played a middle-six center role very well. Now, the management and coaching staff has been overhauled and there have been some changes to the team's roster construction but I am still confident that he would be a great fit in Toronto. However, at 34 years old and with his style of play, it is fair to be concerned that a fall-off could hit hard, especially with two more years on his deal after this.
Many seem convinced that with him choosing not to re-sign with the Leafs means he would never want to play for the team again but the chance to play under the coach he won a Stanley Cup and Frank J. Selke Trophy with could be an exciting opportunity for the Ontario native. Like last time, I would expect ROR to provide depth down the middle for the Leafs, capable of providing a two-way punch that would be great in the postseason. The chance for him to spend three playoff runs with the team will likely be pricey but he would still be one of my top candidates for a deadline acquisition. He would be around for multiple runs and we already know he fits with this team, giving up a first and/or prospect should not be off the table.
Trading for ROR however does carry great risk - he'll be expensive, his contract isn't great and he's likely not as good as he used to be.