With the summer rolling on, it seems like most rosters are pretty close to set. That being said, I still think the Toronto Maple Leafs have two obvious holes that Brad Treliving needs to address before the trade deadline.
I have already written two articles that go through each team in the Eastern Conference, where I picked trade targets from each team for the Toronto Maple Leafs, so now I'm moving to the Western Conference.
I have focused on finding a second-line centre or a puck-moving defenceman as my main targets, because those are the two biggest holes on the roster.
Not every team is a good fit as a trade partner for the Leafs, so some targets are a bit of a stretch, but I tried my best to be as reasonable as possible.
Anaheim Ducks
Trade Target: Mason McTavish
The Mason McTavish situation is interesting. Anaheim still hasn't given McTavish a deal, and he is currently a restricted free agent. The 2021 third-overall pick is currently projected as the Ducks' second-line centre. Last year, he played 76 games and recorded 22 goals and 30 assists for 56 points.
McTavish is only 22, and at that age, there is still room for growth in his game. The situation in Anaheim is odd—they've already moved on from Trevor Zegras and this contract situation with McTavish adds on to the weird vibe between the front office and some of their young core.
The package might be the roadblock in this deal, because I'm not sure the Leafs have the assets for McTavish, but this is definitely a situation Treliving should monitor.
McTavish is a long-term solution, and even if he doesn't pan out as a centre, he is still an extremely talented player who can play on the wing.
If he does end up getting moved, Treliving needs to be calling Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek to try to get something done.
Calgary Flames
Trade Target: Nazem Kadri
I want Kadri back in Toronto more than anything. Admittedly, the passion for this idea comes from nostalgia and the Leafs teams I grew up with. With that being said, there is actual sense in the Leafs targeting Naz.
Kadri is in the fourth year of a seven-year deal, where he carries a cap hit of $7 million (all salary statistics according to PuckPedia.com). Last year he played a full 82-game season where he scored 35 goals and 32 assists for a total of 67 points. His cap hit is expensive but, with the cap rising, I think it's more reasonable than most people make it out to be.
He is 34, so I can see why people would be hesitant to make this trade, but I think he's such a perfect fit for this roster. He can play second-line centre which would push Tavares out to the wing or down to a third-line centre role.
Kadri plays a physical, chippy style that fits what Berube looks for in a player. He would also fill a void in the top six that has been created when Marner left.
The Flames almost made the playoffs last year, but I don't expect them to be that close again. They relied heavily on their young star goaltender, Dustin Wolf, who just received a huge extension. I can see the Flames being sellers around the deadline.
Edmonton Oilers
Trade Target: Kasperi Kapanen
Another former Leaf! While Kapanen doesn't fill a top-six role, it's hard to find many guys on the Oilers roster. There's obviously no chance McDavid, Draisaitl, or Bouchard will become Leafs (at least not this year for McDavid), and they won't move Nugent-Hopkins or Hyman when this could potentially be the final year with the best player in the world.
Kapanen provides speed to a lineup that lacks it. He is also pretty chippy, which fits into the Berube style the Leafs are looking for.
He's on a contract that is just a one year long, with a cap hit of just $1.3 million, so he would fit into the cap structure pretty easily.
Kapanen isn't a needle mover, having only scored five goals and eight assists in 57 games. However, with a team that is all-in to win the Cup, there aren't many options to pick off the Oilers' roster.
Los Angeles Kings
Trade Target: Andrei Kuzmenko
A lot of the talk this offseason has been, "How are the Leafs going to score as much as last year?" Kuzmenko isn't a centre; he is a pure goal-scoring winger, and that gives the offence a higher upside.
He is on a one-year deal with a cap hit of $4.3 million. In 66 games spread across Calgary, Philadelphia, and L.A., Kuzmenko scored 11 goals and 26 assists for 37 points.
He is a pretty streaky player, and I'm not sure he plays the style that Berube likes, but he would make an impact offensively. He also performed well against Edmonton in the playoffs, where he scored three goals and three assists in six games.
He might be a player that frustrates the coaching staff, but his defensive numbers were significantly better in L.A. He posted a 2.22 goals against per 60 minutes (GA/60),(advanced analytics from Evolving-Hockey.com). Now that could definitely be due to the solid defensive systems the Kings run, but there was improvement, and the Leafs also run a solid defensive system.
San Jose Sharks
Trade Target: Mario Ferraro
The Sharks are another team without many options. Ferraro is a left-shot defenceman that excels in the defensive zone while also being solid at moving the puck. His defensive statistics aren't great on paper, but he was playing on a brutal Sharks team.
Ferraro is on the final year of his deal with an AAV of $3.25 million.
I've been a big Ferraro fan for a while, and I think he'd be a great fit on this blue line. The issue is that I don't see the Sharks moving him. While they're rebuilding, you can't trade every piece you have in a rebuild so moving Ferraro doesn't make much sense to me for the Sharks. The only way I see him being moved is if he makes it clear he won't re-sign in San Jose and they trade him at the deadline.
Seattle Kraken
Trade Target: Jared McCann
I don't really get what Seattle is doing, to be honest. They had that series win over Colorado in the 2022-23 season, but ever since they entered the league, their roster has been filled with good—not great—players.
They need to find a way to get that talent or they're never going to be real contenders.
If they are middling or even worse than last season, I wonder if there are going to be changes. If there are, I'd love to see Treliving go after Jared McCann.
McCann is locked up for this year and next with an AAV of $5 million. He's coming off a season where he played 82 games, posting 22 goals and 39 assists for 61 points. While the numbers don't look fantastic, playing him in our top six could help him generate more offence playing with the likes of players like Matthews, Knies, Tavares, and Nylander rather than the guys he's projected to play with like Beniers, Kakko, Stephenson and Marchment.
The cap number is manageable, and we've seen McCann score 40 in a single season; two seasons ago, he scored 29. He would raise the offensive ceiling of this lineup.
Vegas Golden Knights
Trade Target: Brandon Saad
Finding a partner with Vegas was a bit difficult. To be completely honest, I don't think they're a fit for the Leafs to trade with. After the Marner sign-and-trade, where they picked up Roy, I don't see a real fit. I don't see them being out of the playoff picture unless they have signficant injuries to players like Eichel, Theodore, Hanifin, or Marner.
Their defence used to be the biggest strength of this team, but with the loss of Pietrangelo, they can't afford to lose any of the guys they have now. I think we'll see them make a move for Rasmus Andersson. I also don't see them moving a significant forward, so I landed on Brandon Saad.
Saad is on a one-year deal with an AAV of $2 million and can play both wings. Once he got to Vegas last season, he wasn't a bad depth piece. In 29 games he scored six goals and eight assists for 14 points.
He adds depth to the bottom six, and the acquisition price would probably be cheap.