The Toronto Maple Leafs and GM Brad Treliving made their first trade ahead of the deadline late Thursday night, acquiring defenseman Ilya Lyubushkin from the Anaheim Ducks. Lyubushkin wasn't their first choice, but Treliving was unable to work out a deal for Calgary Flames defensemen Chris Tanev and Nikita Zadorov, losing out in the bidding war to Dallas and Vancouver, respectively. Still, with Lyubushkin coming in, the Leafs just became a little tougher to play against and a little deeper on defense, which was certainly the goal.
Following the trade, many were wondering if Treliving and the Leafs were done and whether Lyubushkin would be their "big" blueline addition. Yesterday, Treliving spoke with the media and admitted that while reports have indicated he wouldn't be trading the Leafs' first-round pick, he is open to doing so, depending on the trade. He also admitted that he is not done, or at least he does not want to be done improving the Leafs' roster. In fact, he said that he's going to try to be as creative as possible in improving the team before March 8th.
With the trade deadline just under a week away and the Leafs having to make some roster moves due to players returning from injury, Treliving will be under the microscope here this week to see if and how he changes the roster. Buckle up, folks - this could be an interesting week ahead.
