As the Toronto Maple Leafs continue to look for another right-shot defenseman to balance out their pairings, there have been a number of names that have popped up in the rumour mill. One of them is LA Kings pending UFA Matt Roy. The 6'2, 210 pound righty was a seventh round pick of the Kings in the 2015 draft and is the physical, gritty defenseman the Leafs desperately need.
Roy is in the final year of a 3-year deal that carries a cap hit of $3.15M, so the Leafs would need the Kings or another team take on some salary and send another roster player back to accommodate his cap hit. Unfortunately for the Leafs, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman has reported that Roy is now unlikely to be moved and went a step further saying that the Kings are most likely to stand pat through the deadline without shipping anyone of consequence out.
Through 59 games for the Kings this season, Roy has 3 goals and 18 points but has 137 blocks and 119 hits and averages 21 minutes per game. Those numbers would put him first in blocks and fifth in hits on the Leafs, but third among Leafs defensemen for hits behind only Simon Benoit and Jake McCabe, who are both lefties.
Adding Roy would have been a highly underrated move by Leafs GM Brad Treliving had he been able to do so. It may not have been the flashy, big splash that fans were hoping for, but it would have filled a massive void on the right side of the blueline. Now, the Leafs will have to turn their attention elsewhere.
