Maple Leafs Reportedly Miss Out on Coveted Defensive Trade Target
The Toronto Maple Leafs have reportedly missed out on a coveted defensive trade target in Cam Fowler, to whom they've been connected in the past.
The blueline in Toronto has been an ongoing project for a number of years. Thankfully, this season a group that consists of Morgan Rielly, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Jake McCabe, Chris Tanev, Simon Benoit, Conor Timmins, and Philipp Myers has been quite impressive for the Leafs, but there was a point in time where they could have also added Anaheim's Cam Fowler to the mix.
That was then and this is now. According to Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, Fowler, who was believed to be an option for the Leafs back in September, is reportedly now in the process of being traded to the St. Louis Blues.
Fowler has been a member of the Ducks since his rookie year in 2010-11, playing all 991 of his career NHL games in Anaheim after being drafted 12th overall in the 1st round, back in 2010.
The former NHL All-Star has tallied 96 goals and 361 assists for a total of 457 points during his 15 NHL seasons, with his most productive campaign coming back in 2022-23. That year, Fowler produced 10 goals and 48 points, playing in all 82 games for the Ducks.
Per Friedman, the terms of the deal are as follows:
Given the Leafs' lack of draft capital, it would have been tough to make this deal, but thankfully, with the defense looking quite sharp in Toronto at the moment, I'm sure there isn't too much regret from Brad Treliving that he wasn't able to get something done with Anaheim for the 33-year-old defenseman.
| POLL | ||
DECEMBRE 14 | 1134 ANSWERS Maple Leafs Reportedly Miss Out on Coveted Defensive Trade Target Do you think the Leafs made a mistake by not acquiring Cam Fowler from Anaheim earlier this year? | ||
| Yes | 476 | 42 % |
| No | 658 | 58 % |
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