Top Five Maple Leafs Trade Targets

As the NHL’s March 3 trade deadline draws nearer, let’s make one thing clear: the Toronto Maple Leafs’ primary need is at forward, not on defense. While the Leafs would love to have a new defender like Coyotes D-man Jakob Chychrun, there is incredible interest in that player, and Toronto GM Kyle Dubas probably doesn’t have the appetite to include the wealth of young players/prospects/draft picks that will be necessary to acquire Chychrun.

Instead, with the limited salary cap room the Leafs have, they’re much more likely to trade for a veteran forward or two. And while marquee names such as Hawks stars Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, and Canucks center Bo Horvat are also on the market, the sky-high price tag for them likely will put Toronto out of the mix for one of them.

With that said, the Leafs can still be an impact player on the trade front. There are going to be many players dangled by lower-tier teams this season. The price for them won’t be small, either, but these are the five most reasonable targets for Toronto this year:

Nick Bjugstad, F, Arizona. The Leafs may well make a trade with Arizona before the deadline, but it may be a depth move up front, with the addition of a pure rental/cheaper option such as the 30-year-old Bjugstad. He brings size (6-foot-6) and a valuable right-handed shot, and he can play center or right wing. His $900,000 salary makes him very attractive, and he’s an unrestricted free agent at the end of this season. Easily the cheapest option on this list. A mid-round draft pick and/or average prospect should be enough to send to the Coyotes in return for his services.

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Max Domi, F, Chicago.

Most people will be focused on the next destination for Kane and Toews, and that’s fair. But the Blackhawks have many other assets they’re likely to put up for sale, and you have to know that the Toronto-born-and-raised Domi would love to put on the Blue and White like his father, Tie Domi, did decades ago. Domi’s $3-million salary would make it harder for the Leafs to fit him on their payroll, but who says no to trading Leafs forward Alex Kerfoot (who earns $3.5-million, making the trade almost a perfect financial fit), a second-or-third-rounder or a mid-range prospect, to Chicago in exchange for Domi? The Hawks take on some salary in their tank season, and they get some help for their future. The versatile Domi has a very respectable 13 goals and 30 points for Chicago this year, and he’d give Toronto much more offensively-potent depth.

Gustav Nyquist, F, Columbus.

The 33-year-old Nyquist has toiled in relative obscurity in Columbus for three seasons now, but the crafty Swede posted 18 goals and 53 points in 82 games on a bad Blue Jackets team last season, and this year, he’s got eight goals and 18 points on an even worse Columbus team. His salary is a hefty $5.5 million, but he’s a UFA at season’s end, and maybe the Jackets accept Kerfoot, blueliner Justin Holl – another pending UFA who would get more opportunity and more money in Columbus – and a decent pick or prospect in return for Nyquist. No sense in letting him languish the rest of the season in Ohio, when he could be getting meaningful minutes in Toronto.

Tyler Bertuzzi, F, Detroit.

Yes, we’re moving into the harder-to-acquire trade targets section of this article. Bertuzzi, another pending UFA, may not be made available at all if Red Wings GM Steve Yzerman and his team are in a good position to challenge for a playoff berth down the stretch of this schedule. The 27-year-old winger had 30 goals for Detroit last season, and he may choose to remain with the Wings on a long-term extension. But Yzerman could land many a prospect or draft pick for Bertuzzi, whose cap hit of $4.75 million makes him a more attainable trade target. The Leafs don’t have the money to keep Bertuzzi in Toronto beyond this season, but they may be happy to throw a couple of assets Detroit’s way and outbid competitors for him.

Ryan O’Reilly, F, St. Louis.

Like the Red Wings, the Blues aren’t out of the playoff race, and O’Reilly is a heart-and-soul member of St. Louis’ team. But the business of the sport is forcing the Blues to move on from one or both of O’Reilly and fellow star forward Vladimir Tarasenko, and O’Reilly – who is injured at the moment, and who won’t be available for weeks – is the forward Toronto has its eye on, The 31-year-old O’Reilly will be a UFA this summer, and his current cap hit of $7.5 million means the Blues would have to retain some of his remaining contract. But his Stanley Cup-winning pedigree and two-way game would give the Leafs a significant bump. The above-average prospect, first-round draft pick and additional pick the Leafs would have to give St. Louis would be worth it.