How the Maple Leafs Can Make A Marginal Improvement to Their D Corps and Save Cap Space
Photo credit: Charles LeClaire - Imagn Images
If the Maple Leafs decided to off-load a veteran defenseman for cap relief, there's a very intriguing option available on the open market that could help instantly.
It's no secret that the Toronto Maple Leafs are looking to off-load some salary before the start of the season. They've been trying to move forwards David Kampf and Calle Jarnkrok, but it doesn't seem like other teams are biting.
If the trade market for both forwards remains quiet, the Leafs could look to their blueline for a resolution. While there were rumours at the start of the off-season regarding Brandon Carlo, it would be a lot more wise if they looked into moving Oliver Ekman-Larsson instead.
The 34-year-old had a pretty solid debut season for the Maple Leafs in 2024-25, notching 29 points in 77 games to go along with a plus-14 rating, and 21:04 ATOI, which was his highest total since 2021-22.
While he's a very capable defensemen, Ekman-Larsson carries a cap hit of $3.5 million for the next 3 seasons while lining up on the third pair, which is not necessarily an ideal way of managing their cap space.
Moving him off for draft capital and cap space would then open up a roster spot that could be filled internally by a Henry Thrun or a Cade Webber, however a more reliable option is still available on the open market in Matt Grzelcyk.
The 31-year-old notched a career-high 40 points last year with the Pittsburgh Penguins, which came with 15 power play assists and a career-high 20:37 ATOI. He had previously spent the last 9 years in Boston, where he was an extremely reliable top-4 defenseman between 2017-2024.
Grzelcyk collected 135 points, a plus-137 rating, 440 blocked shots, 310 hits in 443 games with an 18:35 ATOI. He played primarily with either Carlo or Charlie McAvoy during those seasons, proving he can handle heavy minutes and play in all situations, at a very successful rate.
The fact that he remains available this late into the off-season works in Toronto's favour as they could look into signing him to an affordable 'prove it' deal or even on a PTO. In any regard it would save them a lot of valuable cap space while bringing in a more reliable defender.
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