Lightning Overpay to Undercut Leafs, Trade For Two Forwards Ahead of Deadline

The Leafs had been checking in throughout the season on Seattle Kraken forward Yanni Gourde, despite his lengthy stay on injured reserve with a sports hernia.

Unfortunately, the Leafs and Brad Treliving missed out on the opportunity to acquire the 33-year-old as the Tampa Bay Lightning swooped in on Wednesday bringing back the former Bolt, along with Oliver Bjorkstrand, from the Kraken for first-round picks in the 2026 and 2027 drafts along with a second round pick in 2025 (previously owned by the Leafs) and Michael Eyssimont.

Gourde returned to the Seattle lineup Tuesday night and given the familiarity with him, it's no surprise the LIghtning didn't waste time trading for the pending UFA. Bjorkstrand on the other hand, has another year left on his deal after this year that carries a $5.4M cap hit.

For the second time in a week, a division rival of the Leafs swung big while Treliving and the Leafs continue to sit on their hands with hopes that asking prices drop. Sadly, it appears as though fans will have to settle for another underwhelming trade deadline, unless Treliving changes his stance on trading away the likes of Fraser Minten, Ben Danford, Easton Cowan or their first-round pick next season.