After missing out on both Chris Tanev and Noah Hanifin over the past couple of weeks, the Leafs are running out of top quality rentals to bring in via trade before tomorrow's deadline. There are still pieces out there who might make sense for the Leafs who have term remaining on their deals, such as St. Louis Blues defenseman Colton Parayko, but there's no guarantee that he would eve waive for a move to Toronto. As a result, the Leafs may have to get a little more creative if they want to bolster the roster before 3pm tomorrow.
We know that on top of upgrading on the blueline, the Leafs are also looking to add a top-9 forward if possible before the deadline and as it turns out, there's a pretty good forward up for grabs in New Jersey. He also happens to hail from Scarborough, Ontario. I am, of course, talking about Tyler Toffoli.
On Thursday, The Hockey News' Mikey Stephens is suggesting that the Leafs have indeed reached out to the Devils regarding Toffoli, cautioning that the price is still high on the 31-year-old winger. However, there's no question that the 8-time 20-goal scorer would certainly improve the top-9 in Toronto.
After notching a career high 73 points for the Calgary Flames last season, the pending UFA was dealt to the New Jersey Devils this summer in exchange for forward Yegor Sharangovich and a 3rd round draft pick at this past summer's draft. Unfortunately, the Devils have not been able to replicate last year's success this season and, as a result, Toffoli has wound up on the trading block, through no fault of his own. Through 61 games this season, Toffoli has managed to produce 26 goals and 44 points for the Devils.
The LA Kings are also rumoured to be in talks with the Devils regarding Toffoli, so the Leafs certainly are not the only team in the hunt here. It will be interesting to see what the next 24 hours hold.
