Darren Dreger Reveals 7 Potential Trade Targets for the Toronto Maple Leafs
NHL Analyst Darren Dreger recently commented on who he believes the Maple Leafs are going to target in a trade and narrowed it down to a lucky seven candidates.
There have been several headlines recently dominated by speculation over exactly who Toronto is going to bring in and what type of players they need in order to drive through and have a big playoff push.
The trade deadline is still a ways away but is slowly creeping up on the front office, with so many options it can get overwhelming. Between balancing the financial cap situation, GM's need to figure out if the players they added will improve or hinder the chemistry they have.
Among all the names on the board, NHL analyst Darren Dreger seems to have an inkling about who Brad Treliving is going to narrow things down to.
The Lucky Seven Trade Candidates For Brad Treliving
Dreger appeared on TSN's Insider Trading segment and spoke about who he believes are the best trade targets for the Leafs GM to acquire.
The names he mentioned are as followed:
- Ryan O'Reilly
First off is Nelson. the New York Islanders' bruising center. 6'4, 220+ pounds of muscle, he would be the perfect scoring and defensive option for the Maple Leafs.
This season he has 10 goals and 11 assists in 41 games in a down season thus far.
Coming off three straight 30+ goal seasons, he's improved dramatically on defense, wins a ton of faceoffs, can play both the PP and PK, and has one of the sneakiest shots in the league.
The issue with Nelson is his contract. Yes he is a free agent at season's end but $6M for a rental means they will need to give up at least their 2026 first-rounder and potentially a name like Fraser Minten. It will be hard to ask New York to bite, but stranger things have happened.
Strome is a name not necessarily thrown about in recent weeks but would give Toronto a very sound defensive third line pivot who has great playmaking vision, underrated scoring ability and while he doesn't throw hits or block a lot of shots, he has fantastic positioning and stick checking.
This season Strome has seven goals and 16 points in 39 games for the Anaheim Ducks, and will give Toronto a huge boost to their penalty kill.
Much like Nelson, he costs a bit at $5M but he does come with two more years of control; something Toronto desperately covets. He won't cost a big prospect, and the team could pass off Pontus Holmberg and potentially Nick Robertson to get a deal done.
A reunion with O'Reilly would be the perfect solution for the Leafs, it's just a matter if he wants to return after leaving town the first time due to some locker room turmoil.
This year on the struggling Predators he has 12 goals and 13 assists showing he is still a very capable bottom-six offensive player especially given how bad Nashville has been. He adds size, grit, experience with Craig Berube, a Stanley Cup, and he's a local boy. It's everything to love.
His contract is fairly inexpensive at $4.5M and Toronto can make a deal work through picks, retention and possibly offloading a contract, and comes with control.
Laughton, another Toronto native is a great, cheap choice for Brad Treliving that offers him a lot of bang for his buck. Deadly on special teams, a faceoff demon, and not afraid to throw his weight around; he checks all the boxes.
This season, Laughton has nine goals and 13 assists this season in 40 games for the Flyers.
He's also torched the Leafs over the years and the team would love to have him on their side. They can do it for fairly cheap too as Laughton only costs $3M and still has another year left on his deal and it might be the sneakiest option on the market.
Granlund would bring in much needed defense and versatility to the Leafs. Able to slide in on the wing, play center, and mix it up in the Top 9, he's got all the tools necessary.
He has 11 goals and 24 assists this season and brings a great knack for positioning, able to score from anywhere on the ice. Bringing him in would reunite the Sharks and Leafs as trade partners after making a deal for Timothy Liljegren earlier this season.
Making $5M he's not the cheapest option but is a free agent at the end of the season, and given the Sharks are in a rebuild, a handful of draft assets and a low-end prospect should be enough to satiate GM Mike Grier.
Gourde has been linked to the Maple Leafs all season. Not a big body whatsoever, he plays like he's ten feet tall. Not afraid to dig into the corners, throw his weight around and contribute on the penalty kill is a huge bonus.
He is also a fantastic playoff performer and has won two Cups with Tampa Bay. This season he has been on a bit of a slow streak with only six goals and 10 assists but averages 19 goals for his career thus far.
Yet another expensive option at $5.167M, he would be a great but pricey fit for the team, and Seattle isn't exactly a bad team but they aren't doing great; so they may try and squeeze Treliving for everything he has.
Finally Bjugstad is the final candidate, and much like the others on this list checks a lot of boxes.
He's a 6'6 center who has great defensive IQ, capable of putting up 12-15 goals per season, wins faceoffs, throws hits and is an incredibly savvy stick checker.
This season he's struggling a bit though, with only four goals and six assists in 31 games however did miss the beginning of the season due to an injury.
Unlike others on the list however he's incredibly cheap at only $2.1M and is a free agent. Toronto could easily offer a couple of picks and acquire Bjugstad, ship out some bloated deals and find themselves exactly with the piece they need.
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