Leafs reportedly circle back to marquee defender in the Central Division
It's no secret this 2021-22 Leafs team is very good. It's also no secret that their game has some weaknesses, most notably on the defensive side. Jake Muzzin being out adds to that defensive weakness, so are the Buds now in the market for a top-4 defenseman? According to Elliotte Friedman, they are. Toronto appears to be talking to the Dallas Stars about offensive defenseman John Klingberg.
And the Leafs do not appear to be kicking the tires on Klingberg either; they seem to be having an in-depth conversation about what it would take to acquire the Swedish blueliner.
With Muzzin out long-term on LTIR, there's a big hole on the back end for the Leafs to fill. A spot that John Klingberg could potentially help fill. With Muzzin on the shelf, the Leafs would have the cap space to take on Klingberg's $4.5 million dollar cap hit. The question I have is; would Klingberg fit in with the Leafs stylistically?
The other thing is, what would a player like Klingberg cost? If the ask is a first round pick and a top prospect, would Toronto be willing to pay that price for a rental? Klingberg's contract is up at the end of the year, and there's no way the Leafs can afford to re-sign him with the way their cap situation is structured.
The other thing is that if the Leafs acquire Klingberg, it won't be to replace Muzzin in the lineup for the remainder of the season, since Muzzin plays on the left side and Klingberg plays on the right. Youngster Rasmus Sandin has shown the ability to step in and play well in a top-4 role when called upon, so perhaps he can fill the void, but Muzzin and Klingberg are two very different defensemen, stylistically.
It will all boil down to whether the Leafs can check all of the boxes they need to or whether they'll need to pick and choose which boxes to select. Klingberg does check some boxes for sure, but he is a fairly one-dimensional offensive defenseman. He can hold and walk the line, find shooting lanes, contribute on the power play and will help out in the offensive zone, but there will be some defensive inefficiencies to consider there.
We're about 3 weeks away from the trade deadline now, so I'd anticipate the rumour mill starting to spin a little more quickly in the coming weeks.
| POLL | ||
FEVRIER 26 | 436 ANSWERS Leafs reportedly circle back to marquee defender in the Central Division Should the Leafs trade for John Klingberg? | ||
| Yes | 101 | 23.2 % |
| No | 176 | 40.4 % |
| They need a defenseman, but he's not the guy | 159 | 36.5 % |
| List of polls | ||
