Imagine if the Toronto Maple Leafs reunited with both Nazem Kadri and Luke Schenn this season? Well, it seems that it could be more likely than some would think.
Earlier this season, Doug MacLean reported that Maple Leafs management had interest in Kadri. Earlier this week on the Leafs Morning Take podcast, co-hosts Nick Alberga and former Maple Leaf Jay Rosehill discussed the possibility of Toronto also being interested in bringing Schenn back again.
Maple Leafs Should Consider It
Yes, that’s right, the Maple Leafs should consider it. Why not? When Schenn was acquired by the previous regime and returned to Toronto, he and Morgan Rielly were an outstanding pairing. If they were able to bring him back, the blue line would have two very good pairings. Between Chris Tanev and Jake McCabe, who are one of the best shut down pairings in the NHL, and then Rielly and Schenn, they would have one of the best blue lines in the NHL. Additionally, the Maple Leafs would have Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who could pair with one of Simon Benoit, Conor Timmins, or Jani Hakanpaa.
Given the Nashville Predators current situation, their GM, Barry Trotz, may be willing to move a few pieces out to do a bit of an on-the-fly retool. For Schenn, his cap hit is $2.75 million for the remainder of this season and next, which is affordable for the Maple Leafs. Toronto may need to move on from one of Timmins or Benoit to make the money work; however, adding Schenn to the blue line would be a very good improvement.
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As many in Leafs’ land know, Schenn wouldn’t be added for point production but rather his physicality and defensive ability. Right now, through 28 games, he has one goal, zero assists, 33 blocks, and 111 hits. Currently, the leader in hits on the Maple Leafs is Steven Lorentz, who has 67, which is 44 less than what Schenn has. He also showed the organization and fan base that he is willing to drop the gloves at any point in the game. That’s what he did on April 20, 2023, when he accepted a fight against Tampa Bay Lightning’s Tanner Jeannot in a 6-1 game in the first round of the 2023 NHL playoffs.
Schenn is the type of player that makes his defensive partner better. He made Rielly a better defender when they were partners back in 2022-23, and he will likely do it again if they acquire him. It may even be more attractive for Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving, since the pairing of Tanev and Rielly just hasn’t worked. This could mean the organization is looking for another option for Rielly to play alongside. So why not check in on Schenn?
Obviously, it will depend on what the asking price is and the state of the Predators. However, if the asking price isn’t too high and Treliving feels it would help the team, they should definitely pull off the deal to reunite with Schenn again.
It would be an unbelievable trade deadline if Treliving were able to bring Kadri and Schenn back home to where it all began for both of them, home to Toronto for good.
