The Toronto Maple Leafs may not have gotten off to the start that many had hoped, but they are still in good position to not only easily make the playoffs, but win a round or more this season. They have a recent history of loading up at the trade deadline on mainly rentals and seeing all of them leave. Although this is what should be expected of a team trying to win year after year, the job hasn’t gotten done.
This season the Maple Leafs’ main focus will be on the defense, but that isn’t stopping them from looking into forwards as well. They have some young forwards mixed into their group, so what they need and what they’re showing interest in is some veterans from around the league that will be on the move.
3 Veterans Connected to Maple Leafs
Teams that already have a good idea that they aren’t going to be in the playoff picture know who they want to trade by the deadline. Luke Fox noted that Sean Monahan, Adam Henrique, and Alex Wennberg could be of interest to the Maple Leafs at some point this season.
Sean Monahan, Montreal Canadiens
Monahan is on the Montreal Canadiens and is playing a middle-six role at center or the wing. Unfortunately, last season the Canadiens couldn’t trade him due to him getting injured. The team brought him back on a much cheaper contract for one year to be able to trade him this time around for an even better return. Monahan is doing his job and has stayed healthy this season. Through 30 games, he has nine goals and 19 points while playing the third most amongst forwards on the team. He’s making it really easy for the Canadiens to trade him. The Maple Leafs would benefit from the low cap hit, experience, and versatility in their forward group for a playoff run.
Adam Henrique, Anaheim Ducks
The Anaheim Ducks were in the same position with Adam Henrique last season. He performed very well on the top line while healthy, but with an extra year left on his deal, wasn’t moved. He is now in the final year of his contract of $5.825 million AAV. At the very least, the Ducks are going to have to retain half if they move him. He is serving as the second line center, but can play wing and has with effectiveness. Henrique has nine goals and 16 points in 29 games and is good at both ends of the ice.
Alex Wennberg, Seattle Kraken
Last season the Seattle Kraken had an outlier of a season. They made it to the second round of the playoffs in their second season of existence. They have expectedly taken a step back with their mediocre lineup. Sitting out of a playoff spot with a number of teams ahead of them, their playoff chances aren’t great. This will get them to sell what they can and look towards the future. One name that will get attention is Wennberg, whether the Maple Leafs go for him or not. His contract is cheaper than Henrique’s ($4.5 million AAV) and Wennberg is also a UFA after the season. He does a lot of things that don’t show up on the scoresheet, but has four goals and 12 points in 32 games. He can also easily play top-six minutes.
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Despite being rivals, I think the Maple Leafs have the best chance of acquiring Monahan down the line this season. There’s more they could pick from the Canadiens’ lineup on top of that. The money just works out better for a cap-strapped team while them and the Canadiens are in much different places.
