As of Friday, the Toronto Maple Leafs sit first in their division, third in the conference, and sixth in the league. Despite their success, there are still clearly identifiable areas that the team can, and arguably must, improve upon before the playoffs.
The two clear areas where upgrades are badly wanted are third-line centre, and a top-four defenceman. In this piece we’ll look at those two positions and why I believe the Leafs should prioritize a defenceman (yes, like every year).
The 3C
It’s no secret that the Leafs have been hammered hard by injuries at the centre position this season. The most impactful has been Auston Matthews, who’s missed significant time. David Kampf has also been injured this season, forcing John Tavares and Max Domi to carry more load.
With the new injury to John Tavares, who left practice last week and is listed as “week-to-week”, increased focus is on the Leafs centre depth. Chris Johnston provided an update on Tavares’s injury on Thursday, saying, “As for John Tavares, who sustained a lower-body injury during practice last week, he has not resumed skating yet.
While he’s progressing well, there’s still some uncertainty around when he’ll return, and he won’t be close to playing until he’s back on the ice with his teammates.”
Max Domi initially slotted in at 2C to replace JT, but poor faceoff performance and his known defensive struggles pushed him back to the wing. Pontus Holmberg is now the second-line centre, but he’s playing at below replacement level according to HockeyStatCards. Fraser Minten has seen some time, and while he’s shown flashes of brilliance, he’s clearly not ready for the big leagues.
Brad Treliving also recognizes the need for additional centre depth, saying, “But we, probably, along with 15 or 18 other teams, would like to add centre depth. So, it seems to be a position du jour.” This was even before Tavares went down with injury.
Names such as Yanni Gourde, Brock Nelson, Scott Laughton, Mikael Granlund, and Nick Bjugstad have been thrown out as options the Leafs can consider. However, Treliving’s job is further complicated by the fact that the Leafs don’t have a 2025 first-round pick, or a 2026 second.
And the blueline…
There is clearly a hole at centre, but how does the defence look? Put simply, not good enough. There is clearly talent in the Leafs forward corps, even if injuries and some poor play have decreased production. However, talent is certainly an issue when Toronto is consistently icing two of Simon Benoit, Philippe Myers, and Connor Timmins.
The Leafs have one bona-fide top pairing: Jake McCabe and Chris Tanev. McCabe specifically is so effective that when he was out of the lineup for a few games, Toronto’s defence practically fell apart.
Much has been said about Morgan Reilly’s performance this season, but put plainly, it’s been bad. OEL, Reilly’s primary partner on the second pairing, was Florida’s fifth defenceman in their Cup-winning run. Rounding out the D corps are any two of Benoit, Myers, or Timmins.
Arguably, a fully healthy Leafs forward group has the capability to make a deep playoff run. I don’t think the same can be argued about the defence. A new defenceman will see more ice time than a 3C, roughly six or seven additional minutes per night. It’s worth noting that Jani Hakanpää is skating in practice, as an additional D man, but his return and effectiveness are huge unknowns.
I’d argue that having a very solid and dependable top-four on defence can make up for struggles in the bottom half of the forward group. Trusting the second-pairing more can mitigate the defensive struggles of players like Domi, while better puck-moving and transitions can catalyze the dry offence that has haunted the playoff Leafs.
Who could they get?
As for who the Leafs can target, there are suggestions far and wide. A keen fan on PuckPedia’s PuckGM tool suggested a trade for Bowen Byram from the Buffalo Sabres. The Athletic’s Matthew Fairburn has listed Byram as a trade candidate for the Sabres ahead of the deadline.
Also on the Sabres is right-handed defenceman Henri Jokiharju. Jokiharju is an offensive-minded puck-moving D-man who’s been struggling offensively this season, meaning he might command less in return.
Other suggested trade targets have been Jake Walman, Jamie Oleksiak, Rasmus Ristolainen, and another reunion with Luke Schenn.
The Leafs have two clear and emergent needs, a dearth of draft picks, and their high-value assets are mostly prospects. This makes Brad Treliving’s job more difficult as he attempts to, once again, plug holes in a team that’s still searching for a deep playoff run within their window.
Given the fact that there is clearly talent in the forward group, albeit slightly decimated by injuries, while the defence continues to be a pit with no light at the end, Treliving should prioritize improving the blue line over centre depth.
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