It’s no secret that the Toronto Maple Leafs are in dire need of help on the blueline with their questionable play and injuries piling up. They were in the mix for Calgary Flames defenseman Nikita Zadorov. Though, he was eventually dealt to the Vancouver Canucks as they had the space to take on Zadorov’s contract.
During Saturday Headlines on Hockey Night in Canada, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reported that the Maple Leafs couldn’t get a deal done that would allow the Flames to retain salary on not just Zadorov, but with Chris Tanev as well. Friedman also reports that they still remain involved in trying to acquire Tanev, a physical, shut down defender that could be a great asset in the top-four.
With Tanev being the main target as he checks off a lot of what the Maple Leafs need in a defenseman, there are still some intriguing options that general manager Brad Treliving could look at as potential fits to their backend. Here are three other defenders that could potentially be good additions.
Brett Pesce, Carolina Hurricanes
For some time now, many in Leafs Nation have always loved the idea of bringing in Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Brett Pesce. It makes sense as he’s the steady, two-way defender the Maple Leafs desperately need more of.
Even though Pesce wants to stay with the Hurricanes, an extension has yet to happen, making the possibility of trading him becoming likely if they still can’t come to an agreement. While the Maple Leafs are dealing with salary cap constraints, the future of John Klingberg doesn’t sound too promising. On 32 Thoughts: The Podcast, Friedman expects that he could be done for the season (time: 12:10). If he gets placed on long term injured reserve, his $4.15 million contract would open things up to try and acquire Pesce and his slightly cheaper $4.025 million cap hit. It’s been suggested that the Maple Leafs could be involved as well.
Related: Maple Leafs Should Target Ducks’ Lyubushkin After Zadorov Trade
Pesce has always been a two-way force for the Hurricanes. He constantly earns important minutes and goes up against tough competition in a shutdown role while still being a factor offensively with his breakout passing and mobility. He has always been productive against elite level competition as his goals for percentage from the last three seasons at PuckIQ shows.
| Season | GF% vs. Elite Competition |
| 2020-21 | 57.1 |
| 2021-22 | 60.6 |
| 2022-23 | 56.7 |
There’s also Pesce’s health to consider, as he has only played in a full 82-game season twice in his nine-year career. He has been a steady 20- 30- point producer given his defense first mentality, but this season he only has two points in 15 games. When it comes to moving the puck and making smart plays, he has produced and could be another T.J. Brodie-like player for the Maple Leafs.
Nick Seeler, Philadelphia Flyers
TSN’s Darren Dreger reported that the Philadelphia Flyers could move on from two defenders, one being Nick Seeler. The 30-year-old has got consistent play time the last few seasons, which has definitely helped improve his stock as a player.
Much like Tanev, Seeler fits the mold as a defensive minded defenseman with an edge. He has averaged 14:57 a game at even strength to this point, but has also been a fixture on the penalty kill with 2:17 per game. He adds that physical element to his game to be tough to go against, finishing sixth in hits for the Flyers last season with 126 and is once again in that spot with 29 hits this season. In addition, he’s not afraid to get into the shooting lanes and sacrifice the body as he leads the team with 67 blocked shots.
On top of that, Seeler does a great job at minimizing the goals against when he’s on the ice. With a minimum of 100 minutes played this season for the Flyers, he’s been on for 12 5-on-5 goals against– ranking third with a 63.64 GF%– and is only on for four high danger goals against, which gives him a 76.47 high danger goals for percentage. He’s effective when he’s on the ice and while his offensive production isn’t impactful every game, he has found the highlight reel before.
Seeler can move up and down the lineup and is a tough customer to go up against one-on-one. He’s definitely a player that can have an impact for the Maple Leafs.
Alexandre Carrier, Nashville Predators
Daily Faceoff’s Matt Larkin recently mentioned Nashville Predators defenseman Alexandre Carrier as a potential target for the Maple Leafs. He had a fantastic rookie campaign where he had 30 points in 77 games, Larkin describes him as an “unpredictable commodity” as he has dealt with injuries and hasn’t quite improved season to season.
Carrier might be on the up and up as he’s already one point away from matching his 2022-23 point total in half the time. At 5-on-5 (100 minutes min.) for the Predators, he has the seventh best expected goals for percentage of 55.11 and the 10th best HDCF% with 54.24. Big improvements compared to his numbers in both categories from last season where he was just over 50%. While the Maple Leafs could use more of a physical presence, like Seeler, Carrier brings that extra skill from the backend to generate more offense, aside from Morgan Rielly.
Related: Flames Likely to “Tax” Treliving, Maple Leafs In Any Tanev Trade
Overall, he has a strong two-way game with great mobility and transitional play. Larkin compares him to Brodie, which could be a great addition to alleviate some minutes, as he has had some ups and downs this season. He could be a cheap option to bring in but still has some good upside in the hopes that he gets back to his rookie season level of play.
Maple Leafs Have Options
Even though the Zadorov trade fell through, there are still plenty of names out there that could entice the Maple Leafs. The team needs to address this position sooner than later. From inconsistent efforts to losing leads, they need to add players that have the simple shut down style of play but can still push the play forward.
All three of these players have the potential to change the way this team plays within their own end and minimize the damage.
Statistics from Natural Stat Trick and PuckIQ.
