As the Toronto Maple Leafs continue to deal with a litany of injuries throughout the season, the goal remains the same. This team, with its core of players and its cap situation, are going for a cup. Currently sitting atop the North Division, the 2020-21 Toronto Maple Leafs must make adjustments to solidify their standing as a true Cup Contender. So, here are a few Toronto Maple Leafs trade targets.<\/p>\n
General Manager Kyle Dubas has done well in the offseason bringing in much-needed upgrades on the blueline in T.J. Brodie<\/a>, Mikko Lehtonen<\/a> and Zach Bogosian<\/a>. He also brought in veteran presences on offence in Wayne Simmonds<\/a> and Joe Thornton<\/a>. Unfortunately, due to the flat cap, middle-six forwards Kasperi Kapanen<\/a> and Andreas Johnsson<\/a> became cap casualties. Even moving those two contracts off the books, the Leafs find themselves flush up against the cap. This means little to no cap flexibility for Dubas to make deals at this moment. While Kapanen and Johnsson were not bonafide top-six forwards for Toronto, they were very well-rounded third-line\u00a0forwards which allowed the Leafs to play Zach Hyman<\/a> in a top-six role.<\/p>\n [pickup_prop id=”4130″]<\/p>\n Thornton and Simmonds when healthy have been great complements in the top six for the Leafs, which has allowed Hyman to move down to the third line to play as a matchup line alongside Alexander Kerfoot<\/a> and Ilya Mikheyev<\/a>. While that third\u00a0line hasn’t proven itself in terms of performance, the concept has merit.<\/p>\n Many Leafs fans were very upset with the move of Hyman to the third\u00a0line to start the season, but it is clear that Sheldon Keefe understands how important the third line is to playoff success. Look no further than last year’s winners whose third line of Yanni Gourde<\/a>, Blake Coleman<\/a> and Barclay Goodrow<\/a> were instrumental to their success. A perfectly healthy Toronto Maple Leafs team as currently constructed\u00a0would look something like this:<\/p>\n Forwards<\/strong><\/p>\n F1: Joe Thornton \u2013 Auston Matthews<\/a> \u2013 Mitch Marner<\/a><\/p>\n F2: Wayne Simmonds \u2013 John Tavares<\/a> \u2013 William Nylander<\/a><\/p>\n F3: Zach Hyman \u2013 Alexander Kerfoot \u2013 Ilya Mikheyev<\/p>\n Some Combination of:<\/p>\n F4: Travis Boyd<\/a> \/ Jason Spezza<\/a> \/ Nic Petan<\/a> \/ Pierre Engvall<\/a> \/ Alexander Barabanov<\/a> \/ Alex Galchenyuk<\/a><\/p>\n Defence<\/strong><\/p>\n Morgan Rielly<\/a> \u2013 T.J. Brodie<\/p>\n Jake Muzzin<\/a> \u2013 Justin Holl<\/a><\/p>\n Travis Dermott<\/a> \/ Mikko Lehtonen \u2013 Zach Bogosian<\/p>\n Unfortunately, this simply isn\u2019t good enough. The reality is while Joe Thornton will prove to be invaluable to the Leafs come playoff time, he is not suited to keep up with the dynamic duo of Marner and Matthews on his line in the regular season. When fully healthy, Keefe has been moving Hyman up and down those two lines like a swiss army knife. Unfortunately, this impacts Hyman\u2019s ability to gel and get comfortable with his linemates on the third line. While there are positives in Keefe\u2019s fluid lines, and it shows a willingness to change and adapt, continuity is also important. In addition, with Thornton and Simmonds\u2019 durability issues, the Leafs simply need more stability in their top six. Thornton cannot be expected to play heavy minutes on a night-to-night basis and Simmond\u2019s health is always a question at this stage of his career.<\/p>\n It appears that the front office also knows what a Toronto Maple Leafs trade should bring back, a bonafide top-six forward who can play with Matthews and Marner. This would also allow the Leafs to move Hyman to a more consistent third-line\u00a0role to gain chemistry with Mikheyev and Kerfoot.<\/p>\n Being up against the cap means any Toronto Maple Leafs trade made would have to be for a player on a cheap deal, or a team willing to retain salary. Either way, it is clear the Leafs main trade chip will be defenseman Travis Dermott. Toronto will be in a difficult position this offseason during the Expansion Draft as they will lose Travis Dermott or Justin Holl. However, Mikko Lehtonen\u2019s impressive adjustment to North American ice has made Dermott more expendable.<\/p>\n Another piece who has played very well for the Leafs when he\u2019s had his opportunities is forward Pierre Engvall. However, if the Leafs were to make a move for a bonafide top-six forward, Engvall\u2019s 1.5 Million AAV would be required to make any trade feasible. Depending on the calibre of the player coming back, those two pieces may not be enough. This is where draft compensation would also be involved. Trading Dermott would also allow the Leafs to do a 4-4-1 protection and keep Holl.<\/p>\n As aforementioned, the Leafs will lose one of Holl or Dermott in the Expansion Draft to Seattle. One of the things that stood out about Mikael Granlund<\/a> is the fact that he is an impending UFA. This means the Leafs would not need to spend protection on him. This should be Toronto\u2019s mindset when pursuing potential trade targets. If the Leafs were to bring in a forward on a multi-year deal, it would force Toronto into a 7-3-1 protection. The result would be the Leafs forced to leave Justin Holl unprotected.<\/p>\n Likewise, however, any team that takes Travis Dermott from the Leafs must be in a position where they can protect him. In other words, any team that Toronto trades with must only have two defensemen that they would protect over Dermott. If the team cannot protect Dermott, any trade that Toronto offers likely does not get accepted. Lastly, these teams must also be teams who or are not expected to win many games this season or are overachieving.<\/p>\n Without further ado, let\u2019s get started with our potential Toronto Maple Leafs trade targets!<\/p>\n [pickup_prop id=”3650″]<\/p>\n The Arizona Coyotes<\/a> are a team that are competing for the playoffs in the West Division but have been frustratingly inconsistent<\/a>. While Arizona isn’t a bad team this year, it would be prudent for them to look to reclaim draft capital after forfeiting their first-round pick. The Coyotes are also in a prime position to protect Dermott alongside Jakob Chychrun<\/a> and Oliver Ekman-Larsson<\/a>.<\/p>\n While the Coyotes don\u2019t have an impact UFA, they do have young players that would intrigue Toronto. A player that Coyotes fans would loathe trading but would make the most sense for the Leafs is Conor Garland<\/a>. The asking price for a player like Garland would probably start at Dermott, Engvall and a first-round pick. It is an avenue that Dubas should pursue regardless. Otherwise, Brassard is an intriguing 3rd line option.<\/p>\n [pickup_prop id=”2463″]<\/p>\n The Detroit Red Wings<\/a> are once again bottom feeders in their division. While Detroit’s top-flight forwards are likely off the table, veteran Bobby Ryan<\/a> could be an intriguing low-cost pick-up for the Leafs. While past his prime, Ryan still has five goals and 11 points on an anemic Detroit Red Wings offence. He is another player who could benefit from playing with Matthews and Marner. The Leafs would likely be able to pick up extra compensation for Ryan from Detroit if Dermott was in the deal.<\/p>\n The New Jersey Devils<\/a> are a team that have some young forwards breaking out this season in Pavel Zacha<\/a> and Jesper Bratt<\/a>. They also have other solid options such as Kyle Palmieri<\/a>, Nikita Gusev<\/a>, Andreas Johnsson<\/a> and Miles Wood<\/a>. Palmieri and Gusev who have seen less prominent roles in New Jersey\u2019s offence of late are both on the last year of their deals. Now would be the perfect time for New Jersey to sell them at the trade deadline. Both players have a cap hit of over four million dollars AAV, which likely means salary retention would be involved.<\/p>\n The Vancouver Canucks<\/a> are floundering this season. The blueline has been incapable of playing well in its own end and their goalies have been unable to make timely saves. Overall, the entire team has played with the consistency of Canadian weather. When it rains in Vancouver, it pours. Having played the most games in the North Division, the Canucks find themselves second\u00a0last. Outside of Olli Juolevi<\/a> and Nate Schmidt<\/a>, there is no player on the Canucks blueline that needs to be protected. Travis Dermott would also get the opportunity to see consistent ice time with the Canucks. Pierre Engvall would also serve well on a third or fourth-line role. The piece that would fit Toronto\u2019s needs the most would be second-line forward Tanner Pearson<\/a>. Due to his cap hit of 3.75 Mill AAV, however, the Leafs would need Vancouver to retain 1.4 Mill to remain cap compliant.<\/p>\n Main Photo:<\/p>\nHow it has Gone so Far<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Why it\u2019s Not Good Enough<\/strong><\/h3>\n
What a Potential Trade Package Would Look Like<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Potential Team Candidate Requirements<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Potential Toronto Maple Leafs Trade Targets<\/strong><\/h3>\n
Arizona Coyotes<\/h4>\n
Detroit Red Wings<\/h4>\n
New Jersey Devils<\/h4>\n
Vancouver Canucks<\/h4>\n