Leafs join trade party
With one sleep left before the NHL trade deadline, the Toronto Maple Leafs joined the party Thursday by bulking up on defense, while two Western Conference Stanley Cup contenders made more moves to improve in crucial areas.
And one of the top teams in the East looks to be on the verge of making a big splash.
Colorado acquired a pair of versatile forwards from Central Division rivals, Brandon Duhaime from Minnesota and Yakov Trenin from Nashville, Edmonton got defenseman Troy Stecher from Arizona and Toronto received Joel Edmundson from Washington.
“Every team has a window in which they see success or a key moment of time for the organization — whether it’s two years, five years, depending on expiring contracts who they have to renew,” Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said. “There’s lots of teams going all-in: teams that feel like they’ve got a chance to win, if they add certain things to their lineup, they’re going to go all-in. Your goal is to win the Stanley Cup.”
It shows. Colorado and Edmonton stayed active, after the Avalanche added center Casey Mittelstadt and defenseman Sean Walker in separate deals and the Oilers giving themselves serious depth down the middle by trading with Anaheim for Adam Henrique and Sam Carrick.
The Avalanche sent a 2026 thirdround pick to the Wild for Duhaime and a 2025 third and defense prospect Jeremy Hanzel to the Predators for Trenin and the rights to unsigned draft pick Graham Sward. The Oilers sent a 2027 fourth-round pick to the Coyotes for Stecher, and the Leafs got Edmundson from the Capitals for a a third-rounder this year and a 2025 fifth.
Carolina raised some antennas by putting goaltender Antti Raanta, defenseman Tony DeAngelo and forward Brendan Lemieux on waivers, moves that would clear significant salary cap space. Then the Hurricanes held out Michael Bunting from their game Thursday night for trade-related reasons, sparking buzz that they might be getting the top player available, Pittsburgh winger Jake Guentzel. The deadline is 3 p.m. today. Toronto’s trade for Edmundson started the action Thursday, adding some much needed toughness on the blue line. He’s a left shot, which the Leafs have plenty of, but his playoff experience alone makes Edmundson a potentially important acquisition for a team dreaming of an extended run this spring.
The Capitals are retaining a quarter of Edmundson’s salary after Montreal already has half from a trade last offseason and getting a third-rounder that belonged to the Islanders. Salary retention makes the him quite the bargain for the Leafs at a cap hit of $875,000, just above the league minimum.