Scout thinks a Leafs/Predators trade involving Alex Kerfoot could benefit both sides

For teams like the Toronto Maple Leafs, who are over the salary cap by just under $1.5M, it appears as though their offseason moves are very close to complete, minus one or two smaller moves to become cap compliant and just one RFA signing left in Rasmus Sandin. With Sandin likely to bridge, it should be a relatively simple next few weeks.

If you asked them just before free agency, I'm sure that a large percentage of Leafs fans would have bet dollars to donuts that Justin Holl and Alex Kerfoot would be moved this summer. Yet, here we are in mid-August and both players remain Leafs.

Leafs GM Kyle Dubas has never been in the habit of making a move just for the sake of making a move. He's a guy who doesn't deal assets unless he feels as though it makes the team better. Maybe that's why the team has been getting incrementally better season over season.

One scout believes that there is a trade out there that would both allow the Leafs to move Alex Kerfoot AND get better in the process, as Slovak scout Sam Tirpak views the Leafs and the Nashville Predators as solid trade partners. The target for the Leafs? Eeli Tolvanen.

Tolvanen was a 1st round pick in 2017 (30th overall) by the Preds, but up to this point, things haven't worked out in Nashville as planned. The Preds have had Tolvanen on a bit of a yo-yo string between the NHL and the AHL for most of his young career, only finally allowing him a full time spot last season. As for how he fared, he was limited to just 23 points in 75 games. He has two years remaining on his current deal, which carries a $1.45M cap hit.

Kerfoot, on the other hand, is coming off of a career best 51-point season in Toronto, but has just one year remaining on his deal at $3.5M, though he's only owed $750K in actual salary. The pending UFA is the final remnant of the infamous Nazem Kadri deal.

Could the Leafs pry a 23-year-old winger with just 122 NHL games under his belt out of Nashville in exchange for a Swiss Army knife that is Kerfoot? He does give the Preds a versatile forward who can play center as well.

Does a move like this make the Leafs a better team? With young and struggling players like Tolvanen, it's hard to say. However, we know that Leafs GM Kyle Dubas likes a project. Tolvanen has shown flashes of skill in his limited time in the league - most notably in 2020-21, when he scored at a 20-goal pace. He's also a kid who likes to get in on the forecheck, throw hits and be very physical, so there could be a fit. Whether or not Nashville would consider the move is another question.