Maple Leafs Urged to Trade for No. 1 Defenseman Following New Report
The Toronto Maple Leafs need to add a defenseman to bolster their blueline, and a new report has emerged that sees Noah Dobson suddenly available on the market.
With Morgan Rielly struggling this season, the Maple Leafs need to give themselves a fighting chance and add a defender who can not only contribute offensively, but assist in the back end when Rielly gets caught slacking.
The team has been linked to Chicago's Connor Murphy as well as former draft pick Luke Schenn, but there's also another name the team could go out and get to make their team better.
According to a new report, defenseman Noah Dobson is available from the New York Islanders, as GM Lou Lamoriello contemplates which pieces to keep or sell by March 7.
But should Toronto go after Dobson?
Report: Noah Dobson Available For Trade; New York Prefers Brock Nelson
In short, yes. Dobson would add another big presence to the Maple Leafs, add some much needed offense at the backend, and give Morgan Rielly the solid defensive partner he needs.
Dobson, 25, has 6 goals and 18 assists & a minus-8 in 46 games with the Islanders this season. In addition to the offense, he has 81 blocks, 42 hits and averages over 24 minutes a game.
The Islanders 12th overall pick in 2018 was recently made available according to the report, and the article confirmed the rumor with a verified team source:
Dobson is a restricted free agent at the end of his deal and will no doubt look to potentially double the $4-million he's currently making and would provide Toronto with a future top d-man as their blueline continues to age.
If the Islanders want scoring, they can take Nick Robertson off Toronto's hands.
While it won't be the only piece headed back to Long Island, Robertson needs a fresh start and has the potential to be a big piece of New York's offense.
He's also been the subject of trade rumors since the beginning of the year started, and if Toronto can't get Nelson or Jean-Gabriel Pageau from New York, they can shift gears toward Dobson.
There's always a chance Toronto is able to pry Nelson away from the Islanders, but if they can't, they should try and look to bring in Dobson instead.
What do you think? Should Noah Dobson be the newest addition to the Toronto Maple Leafs?
