November 27, 2023 | 11:56am ET
TheFourthPeriod.com

LEAFS WAITING ON CAP CLARITY BEFORE PURSUING TRADE?

Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving

The Toronto Maple Leafs have been exploring the trade market in hopes of upgrading their blueline and may be inching closer to a move providing they have the salary cap space to do so.

After placing defenceman John Klingberg on LTIR last week, speculation over whether he will be able to play this season immediately arose. The Maple Leafs will have a better idea as to the severity of Klingberg’s injury this week, but if he is shut down for the rest of the season, that will give the club his full $4.15 million cap hit to use to bring in outside help.

If Klingberg is eligible to return at some point this regular-season, the Leafs will need to make sure they have $4.15 million in cap space to welcome him back without penalization.

The Maple Leafs have already had discussions with the Calgary Flames about defencemen Chris Tanev and Nikita Zadorov and have been scouring the league for other options. Zadorov requested a trade earlier this month, but Flames GM Craig Conroy told Sportsnet last week that he isn’t in a rush to move him.

“It’s just like any other person, we’re just going to do what’s best for the Calgary Flames, and on our timeline,” Conroy said.

Leafs GM Brad Treliving is also believed to have such defencemen as Anaheim’s Ilya Lyubushkin and Philadelphia’s Sean Walker on his radar, among others, and both are on expiring contracts, along with Tanev and Zadorov.

Earlier in the season, as TFP reported, the Leafs were looking around to see what the price tags on certain middle-six wingers might be for potential deals later in the season and that could still be an area the team pursues closer to the trade deadline in March.