The Toronto Maple Leafs missed out on acquiring both Chris Tanev and Nikita Zadorov from the Calgary Flames, largely in part because Leafs GM stood firm on not trading away the Leafs first round pick, Fraser Minten or Easton Cowan. With Timothy Liljegren's injury status unknown after missing his second straight game and Mark Giordano leaving early in the first period after crashing into the boards, Treliving had to step up his efforts to add to his blueline in a hurry.
According to Elliotte Friedman and Pierre LeBrun, Treliving is set to acquire, and for the Leafs, reacquire Anaheim Ducks defenceman Ilya Lyubushkin. Both Friedman and LeBrun have reported that Lyubushkin has been pulled from the Ducks game tonight and that the Leafs and Ducks have had increased discussions as the night has progressed.
Lyubushkin was acquired during the 2021-2022 season by the Leafs to add some size and physicality to their blueline, much like he is going to again this year. His first tour of duty with the Leafs saw him play on the top pairing with Morgan Rielly and it appears that he will likely slot into that position again once the trade is finalized. Lyubushkin is in the final year of a 2-year deal that carries a cap hit of $2.75M.
