Newest Trading Block Addition Will Allow Maple Leafs to Bolster Their D Corps in a Big Way

The Stanley Cup Finals hasn't even concluded and several teams have been openly shopping top-end talent. The Los Angeles Kings are one of those teams as they seem to be stuck between a rock and a hard place in regards to two defensive prospects in Brandt Clarke and Jordan Spence.

The issue seems to be that there isn't enough room for both players and that the Kings are leaning towards keeping Clarke over Spence, which is something the Toronto Maple Leafs should be monitoring excessively at the moment.

Drafted in the 4th round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draf, Spence finally made his way to the NHL in 2021-22, where he appeared in 24 games. He wouldn't become an every day player until 2023-24 but has generated 6 goals and 52 points in 150 games since.

Spence occupied a spot in the bottom-pair for the Kings last year as he averaged 16:47 TOI. He added 77 blocked shots and 80 hits to go along with 28 points, which was third most by a Kings defenseman behind Clarke and Vladislav Gavrikov.

Throughout the season there were murmurs that Clarke could have been the odd-man out but he became a focal point down the stretch, and upon entering the off-season, he seems to be the preferred option.

That works in favour of the Maple Leafs because it would cost a lot less to acquire Spence compared to Clarke. The Australian native is somewhat of an underrated defenseman who excelled in the analytical side of the game but wasn't really given the opportunity to truly excel.

With the Maple Leafs, Spence would be able to spread his wings a little more and earn some power play time on the second unit, while also giving them the flexibility of either shifting Oliver Ekman-Larsson to his natural side or trading him outright for other roster needs.

Spence would be the perfect buy-low candidate since he comes in with little risk when you factor in his RFA-eligibility in 2026 as well as his low $1.5 million dollar cap hit. It would be a home-run type move from the Maple Leafs should they be able to bring him into the fold.