It is widely known that the Toronto Maple Leafs and GM Brad Treliving would like to shore up their blueline ahead of the playoffs and are not willing to move their first-round pick for a deadline rental. Recently they have been linked to St. Louis Blues defenseman Colton Parayko, who is signed until the 2029-2030 season with a $6.5M cap hit.
The Leafs' scouting staff has been frequenting Blues games more lately, but according to Blues reporter for The Athletic, Jeremy Rutherford, they are not only keeping a close eye on Parayko, but one of their forwards as well.
In his latest for The Athletic, Rutherford noted that the Leafs' scouting staff attended a Blues game last week to specifically watch forward Pavel Buchnevich. The 28-year-old forward has one more season on his current deal with a $5.8M cap hit.
The 6'3, 200 pound winger has 19 goals and 43 points in 53 games for the Blues this season and would add more skill and size to the Leafs' middle six as well as some offensive punch. Not only is the price high on Parayko, but according to Elliotte Friedman, the price is very high on Buchnevich as well.
To acquire one or both of Parayko and Buchnevich, it would likely cost the Leafs their first-round pick, one of Fraser Minten or Easton Cowan and a roster player or two to balance out the cap hits. While Treliving says he wants to acquire players with term, it may be in the best interest to steer clear of Parayko given the length of term remaining on his contract and the fact he is 30-years-old, but acquiring Buchnevich is something that I'm sure many Leaf fans would not be opposed to, depending on the cost.
