The Toronto Maple Leafs are considering upgrading their depth at the center position. With seven of their regular fowards doubtful for tonight's game, that much should be obvious.
Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman mentioned in his 32 Thoughts that theToronto Maple Leafs, Chicago Blackhawks, and Nashville Predators are the teams most interested in shopping for a center through the trade market. They are looking for better options behind Auston Matthews and John Tavares.
The Leafs are slightly disadvantaged due to a lack of cap space and draft picks,however recent injuries may have shown them that they can live without some of their more expensive players. Plus, don't forget that even with the Leafs up against the cap, it's up to all general managers to get creative, and when it comes to figuring out the salary cap, Brad Treliving has one of the best at his side in Brandon Pridham.
If the Leafs decide to pursue a player with a high cap hit, they can use their draft picks and a prospect or two from a decent prospect pool. Many different factors can be utilized, such as the other team retaining salary and the use of a third team to retain even more salary. It wouldn't be the first time the Leafs used this method to get the player they wanted.
One such player is former Leaf and current Calgary Flames forward Nazem Kadri. He has four years left on his current contract, worth $7 million a season. The Leafs would need that cap hit to be trimmed in half ($3.5 million) to have a chance at adding him to their roster. Kadri returning to the Leafs and helping them win a championship would be similar to the Cody Rhodes story in World Wrestling Entertainment. (Salary cap information from puckpedia.com)
Can Nazem Kadri replicate WWE star Cody Rhodes and finish his story
Cody Rhodes did not find much success during his first tenure with WWE from 2006 to 2016. He left the company disgruntled and determined to make a name for himself outside of the WWE. Kadri spent parts of ten seasons with the Leafs before getting traded after back-to-back suspensions in the playoffs.
Kadri found success with the Colorado Avalanche by winning the Stanley Cup in 2022 after registering 28 goals and 59 assists for 87 points that season. Cody Rhodes found success in All Elite Wrestling (AEW) as a wrestler and as Executive Vice President and co-founder from 2019 - 2022. (Stats from hockey-reference.com)
After not having his contract renewed, Cody Rhodes returned home to the WWE to try and finish his story by winning the WWE Undisputed World Championship. It took him a few tries, but on April 7th, 2024, Rhodes finally beat Roman Reigns for the WWE Undisputed World Championship and finished his story.
Could Kadri return home to the Leafs and finish his story by ending the NHL's longest Stanley Cup-winning drought? What a career-defining moment that would be.