The Perfect Low-Cost Solution for Brad Treliving's Third-Line Center Search
The Toronto Maple Leafs need to boost their third line badly, and amidst all the premium names available, one buy-low player could be just the solution.
With the deadline a month away and teams already pulling off blockbuster trade after blockbuster trade, it feels like Brad Treliving is on the outside looking in when it comes to making sure his team is best equipped for a deep playoff run.
But there's a lot of factors that play into why a trade hasn't materialized yet, and the team has some potentially intriguing trade pieces but nothing that can solidify a premium talent.
So with that being said, the Maple Leafs should look to buy low and they have the perfect player to do it: Nashville's Thomas Novak.
Thomas Novak A Perfect Trade Piece For Brad Treliving
Not the flashiest name, Novak would provide everything Toronto needs at a fraction of the cost of a Brock Nelson-type player. He's still young at 27, has the offense the third line desperately needs (35 goals over his last two seasons), and is relatively cheap with term (a huge deal-breaker for the Leafs).
Novak has been pushed to the side in Nashville after they decided to go all-in this past offseason by signing Steven Stamkos and Jonathan Marchessault and has lost about a minute of ice time this season compared to the last two.
This season Novak has nine goals and eight assists in 42 games, which would place him seventh on the team in goals and 10th in total points.
He's more than capable of winning faceoffs (43.2% for his career) and would offer Toronto a lot of flexibility in regards to stretching out their stars.
For as good as they are, Mitch Marner and Auston Matthews play better separately. Putting Novak in the middle allows Max Domi to slide up to play with Matthews where the two have a history finding chemistry.
As surprising as it is, moving Marner to the third line gives Toronto three playmakers, three scoring options and three big-bodied sparkplugs to open up space.
Knies -- Matthews -- Domi
Pacioretty -- Tavares -- Nylander
McMann -- Novak -- Marner
Holmberg -- Minten -- Lorentz
The first three lines are more than deep enough to make an impact, and maybe giving Domi more responsibility up front will awaken his stagnant offensive game.
He's not the name fans initially think of when they envision the player who will take Toronto to the next level, but Thomas Novak is a sneaky good player who could bring a lot of help to a team that's strapped for cash and needs to be careful.
