Toronto Maple Leafs general manager (GM) Kyle Dubas has been a busy man this season, trying to upgrade his hockey club to give this roster the best chance to make some noise in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. With the recent blockbuster deal with the St Louis Blues to acquire both Ryan O’Reilly and Noel Acciari, the Maple Leafs now have a tremendous amount of center depth amongst their lineup and this could potentially make David Kampf available in trade talks. Hockey insider Darren Dreger recently mentioned he felt Dubas was not finished and could see a roster player like Kampf being shipped out.
So far through three games with O’Reilly and Acciari in the lineup, head coach Sheldon Keefe has used O’Reilly at second-line center, Acciari down the middle on the fourth line and Kampf sitting in the third hole. Keefe’s recent comments about eventually seeing Tavares back at center, to me, means Kampf is available but it could be a steep price. Here’s three potential trade destinations for the pending unrestricted free agent:
Colorado Avalanche
Two things to consider here, if Kampf is dealt it’s likely to a Western Conference team and it’s likely either going to be for a mid-round draft pick or depth defenseman. The Colorado Avalanche need depth down the middle and are the first potential destination on the board.
Kampf has scored five goals in 58 games this season with the Maple Leafs and is best served in a shut-down role and killing penalties. The Avs could use a veteran with defensive instincts behind the likes of Nathan MacKinnon and youngster Alex Newhook.
Related: Maple Leafs Must Move On From Defenseman Justin Holl
Colorado doesn’t necessarily have any depth defenseman who are likely available that jump off the page. If this is the destination, it’s likely Dubas takes back a draft pick and given Avs’ GM Joe Sakic has already moved out his second and third-rounders the next two drafts, perhaps their 2024 fourth-rounder is something to circle.
Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers are actively discussing a number of trades and could have interest in landing a third-line center for their Stanley Cup Playoff push. Kampf fits the bill and could alleviate Ryan Nugent-Hopkins to play a more offensive role in the team’s top six.
The Oilers have Jesse Puljujarvi who is in desperate need of a change of scenery, however leaving Edmonton to a hot bed in Toronto may not be the best recipe for success. GM Ken Holland has a number of draft picks still left at his disposal, could a third-round pick in 2023 be too pricey for a defensive minded center?
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Holland will be aggressive before the March 3 trade deadline, however with his attention on a potential Erik Karlsson trade, it’s hard to say how much focus he’ll put into upgrading his bottom six. Besides Puljujarvi the Oilers don’t have a ton to offer the Maple Leafs.
Dallas Stars
A team expected to add at least one forward before the trade deadline, the Dallas Stars could have interest in acquiring Kampf from the Maple Leafs.
The Stars have under $1 million in deadline cap space and this deal would have to be a money in/money out type of transaction. Dallas has defenseman Colin Miller who, interestingly enough is a Sault St Marie Greyhound alumni, so we know Dubas would have interest.
Miller is signed through next season at $1.8 million against the cap and could help replace Justin Holl in 2023-24. The veteran blueliner has appeared in 56 games and has recorded 13 points. He plays most of his minutes at even strength and would give the Maple Leafs another option from the right side.
Dallas also has the towering presence of Jani Hakanpaa, who makes the exact same as Kampf at $1.5 million annually and the 30-year-old defenseman is signed through next season. At 6-foot-5 Hakanpaa is a beast and loves to throw his body around and play a physical game. He’s recorded 155 hits and 96 blocked shots so far in 2022-23 and as one of the Stars’ best penalty killers, would be a tough sell for management to cut ties with. Not likely a trade candidate, especially for a defensive bottom-six forward and much more likely Miller would be included here.
At the end of the day, Dubas and the Maple Leafs would be wise to keep Kampf in their mix. While moving Tavares back to center could mean less playing time for Kampf, it’s likely Toronto would move Acciari to the wing before moving out Kampf. Unless, a team contacts the Maple Leafs with a tremendous amount of interest in acquiring their shut-down center and have a veteran defenseman to offer. Then anything is possible.
