Brad Treliving's Trade Target Reportedly Interested in Joining the Maple Leafs, per Pierre Lebrun
The Toronto Maple Leafs need to add some scoring and defensive acumen to their bottom six, and according to Pierre LeBrun, one target has mutual interest in joining.
The trade deadline is a week away and the speculation is running wild. Teams are preparing for a deep playoff push and the question of which team is going to make a big splash in order to improve their roster is one that is being asked of several clubs.
One in particular who is expected to be big players are the Toronto Maple Leafs, who are being linked to every name under the sun.
According to NHL Insider Pierre LeBrun, one of the names they were looking at has mutual interest in joining the team, and for a couple of good reasons.
Why Brandon Tanev Makes Toronto Better
It would be great if the Maple Leafs could bring Brandon Tanev aboard, as he would help Toronto's offensive inconsistencies on the third line, as well as offer a lot of defensive prowess that is sorely lacking.
It would also reunite Brandon with his brother Chris, who has been the backbone of Toronto's improved defense.
Getting the chance to win not only in your hometown, but with your brother has to give the Maple Leafs a big leg up in negotiations.
This season, Tanev has nine goals and eight assists in 58 games while adding 117 hits, 91 blocks, and only 8 PIM in 14:02 TOI.
One of the NHL's better defensive forwards, Tanev can bring the type of tenacity Craig Berube loves, and wouldn't cost Toronto as much as Brayden Schenn although he would still command a decent price (a couple of picks and a prospect like Nikita Grebenkin).
He only makes $3.5M and is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, so his cap hit isn't going to be the worst thing in the world; and if he re-signs for fairly cheap it's a bargain deal with a rising cap.
Given the Maple Leafs don't have a ton of premium assets, getting those top players ahead of teams like Vegas, Florida, Tampa, and Winnipeg is going to be a bit harder, so shifting gears to a player like Tanev is a smart call.
Plus he wants to win, and with a weakened Eastern Conference compared to previous seasons, it's anyone's game and Toronto needs to take advantage of every opportunity; and adding Tanev is great one to improve their lineup.
Time is ticking for Brad Treliving, but he has one interested party in Brandon Tanev and he might just be the first domino to fall in the Leafs trade plans.
