The Toronto Maple Leafs are rumored to be interested in Bryaden Schenn, but the team should look elsewhere for a third-line centre.
Don't get me wrong. Brayden Schenn is a proven winner and someone who you would want on your team, but at $6.5M AAV until 2028, I don't think he's the player that the Toronto Maple Leafs should pursue.
If you're going to acquire a player with term, it should be someone at the beginning of their first big contract. It shouldn't be a 33-year-old aging centre, who's best years are definitely behind him.
Schenn has another three years on his contract after this one, and even with half of that retained he would be too old and expensive to make any sense. Schenn is not very good anymore and he sure isn't going to be good in three years.
Schenn is a better option than Pontus Holmberg, David Kampf or Fraser Minten, but he would only be a minor upgrade on those players, and the cost, both in cap-hit and assets to aquire, just doesn't make any sense for the Leafs at this point.
Toronto Maple Leafs Should Not Pursue Bryaden Schenn
As much as we look at this season as the make-or-break year for the Leafs to win a Stanley Cup, they still have a three-year window after this, in my opinion. As long as Auston Matthews is signed, then this team will be in a championship window, so although you want to win now, you can't sacrifice those three years of Matthews and William Nylander by doing so.
Schenn is an eight-time 20-goal scorer, a Stanley Cup winner and someone who Craig Berube would trust in big moments, so that's incredibly valuable. However, there are better options and Schenn isn't that big-fish they need to acquire.
Schenn makes the same amount of money as Brandon Hagel, which is the type of contract you'd want to acquire. Hagel is signed until 2032, but is only 26-years-old, so his best years are ahead of him, and he's just reaching his prime. If you're the Leafs, you'd happily take on that salary for someone like Hagel, but not with Schenn.
I can't stress this enough, but when it comes to the NHL Trade Deadline this year, the Leafs don't need to add another "decent" player. They need a superstar and someone who can actually make a difference this year and for year's to come. They need someone who can replace Mitch Marner and John Tavares moving forward, or someone who can be their number-one defenseman for year's to come
I know that's easier said than done, but the Leafs cannot afford to waste their salary-cap and assets on players who are past their prime, who probably won't help. We don't need anymore Nick Folignos or Ryan O'Reilly's, but instead need someone like Mikko Rantanen or Jake Guentzel.
We'll see how the NHL Trade Deadline goes, but let's hope Bryaden Schenn isn't someone that the Leafs acquire.