Former Edmonton Oilers defenseman linked in trade to Maple Leafs

It seems that Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving is living up to his word as he had stated several weeks ago that his team was not done in terms of adding players and depth to the lineup.

Defense has always been the Maple Leafs weak spot, and he has gone out this offseason and addressed this issue by bringing in Chris Tanev and Oliver Ekman Larsson.

Bringing in a player like Larsson would solidify the back end even more and likely see the departure of Timothy Liljigren who holds a cap hit of $3,000,000 per season and potentially Nick Robertson who is currently a restricted free agent seeking out a trade request.

The once controversial defenseman who was sent to the Oilers in exchange for 1st overall pick Taylor Hall played for the Oilers for five seasons. The initial look of the trade did not resonate well with fans and pundits were in disbelief as it was a straight up one-on-one deal that sent Hall to New Jersey. Soon after, he found immediate chemistry with Oscar Klefbom which the two became a strong pairing for the Oilers.

He was chosen by the Seattle Kraken in the 2021 expansion draft, and he has played for the team for three seasons. His best year with the crack it was in 2022 when he played all 82 games, scoring goals with 25 minutes for 33 points and was a + 27 with 47 penalty minutes.

Adding a defensive defenseman is exactly what the Leafs need who shoots right and is 31 years old. It remains to be seen whether Treliving and Ron Francis can make this deal work.

Source: House of Hockey