Leafs news outlet suggests a possible trade scenario involving a current member of the D corps
With all the changes the Toronto Maple Leafs made this off-season, their salary cap situation has been at the forefront of several conversations. However with Jake Muzzin and Matt Murray being LTIR eligible, the Leafs should have just enough room to be cap compliant, albeit with a smaller roster than 23 players.
To further enlighten on the situation, the Leafs might have to go with a 20-man roster to start the season if they don't want to make any further moves to become compliant. With Ryan Reaves and Mark Giordano potentially having nights off for rest or maintenance, Leafs Nation News believes they should look to acquire a waiver exempt defenseman from the 2019-20 draft. How can they do this? By trading a member of their current D corps.
Conor Timmins is a possible trade candidate, even with his strong performance last year and his subsequent contract extension. The need for a waiver exempt defenseman is more important than most people realize if Reaves and Giordano are rested from time to time.
A few options, according to LNN, could be Ville Heinola from the Winnipeg Jets, Kaedan Korczak from the Vegas Golden Knights, and Ronnie Attard from the Philadelphia Flyers. LNN also cautioned that not all of these deals would be on even footing, so some balancing pieces may be required on either side. Another idea behind this move would be finding Timmins a team that would use him regularly and not as a 7th defenseman.
Heinola was drafted in the first round of the 2019-20 draft by the Jets but has found it difficult to make the leap to the NHL. He has done relatively well for the Manitoba Moose of the AHL with 13 goals and 74 points in 108 games across 3 seasons. The Jets currently have Josh Morissey, Dylan Demelo, Brenden Dillon, Neal Pionk, Dylan Samberg, and Nate Schmidt ahead in the depth chart.
A second round pick in the 2019 draft, Kaedan Korczak stands in at 6'4/192 lbs and is a right-handed shot. He has one NHL game under his belt, while playing for the Henderson Silver Knights in parts of the last 3 seasons accumulating 6 goals and 30 points. The Golden Knights have Alec Martinez, Alex Pietrangelo, Brayden McNabb, Shea Theodore, Nicolas Hague, and Zach Whitecloud ahead on the depth chart.
Ronnie Attard is slightly older because he went un-drafted in his first few eligible seasons but has really turned a corner since 2019. He scored 21 goals and 58 points in his final 2 seasons in the NCAA before chipping in with 32 points in 68 games in the AHL this past season. The Flyers seem like a very unlikely trade candidate in this scenario with their rebuild, signing Attard to a new contract this summer, being very high on the prospect, and not necessarily needing Timmins - but it still wouldn't hurt to ask.
| POLL | ||
SEPTEMBRE 10 | 174 ANSWERS Leafs news outlet suggests a possible trade scenario involving a current member of the D corps Should the Leafs trade Conor Timmins before the season begins? | ||
| Yes | 35 | 20.1 % |
| No | 71 | 40.8 % |
| Only if the trade makes the team better | 68 | 39.1 % |
| List of polls | ||
