Many fans were disappointed on Friday when the Toronto Maple Leafs and GM Brad Treliving did nothing but bring in another fourth line player in Connor Dewar. Fans had been hoping that Treliving would be able to land a top-four defenseman or at least acquire a significant upgrade that would help the Leafs in the playoffs. Unfortunately, Treliving did not have the assets to do anything drastic without dealing his 1st round pick and/or top prospects Easton Cowan and Fraser Minten, but it doesn't mean he wasn't trying to swing big, according to TSN's Chris Johnston.
"My sense is that if anything, it was about trying to get some defensemen with term... and I don't think that was there," said Johnston on Overdrive yesterday. "The Leafs explored to see what else might be out there if they were going to trade their first-round pick or Easton Cowan or Fraser Minten. They looked at ways they could have used some of that capital to change the way things looked the rest of this season and ultimately into next year."
While Johnston admitted that Treliving was trying to make a big splash, he has noted publicly in the past that teams are not built at the deadline, so the lack of big trades for the Leafs should not come as a huge surprise. The Leafs may have struck out at the deadline, but with only Morgan Rielly and Jake McCabe under contract beyond this season on the blueline, they will be taking plenty of big swings in the off-season.
