"It's a subject line we've heard over and over again since the start of the season, for the Toronto Maple Leafs to find any playoff success, they'll have to strengthen up their defense. While many reporters and Leafs' fans might feel that way, Leafs management might not.Morgan Rielly and Ron Hainsey have looked good throughout the season, but Jake Gardiner continues to have a big question mark beside his name and Nikita Zaitsev remains sidelined with an injury. NHL Insider Bob McKenzie mentioned recently that he feels the Leafs are fine with that and won't be making any moves for a rental. He believes the Leafs would prefer to trade for a defenseman who's already under contract for a couple of years rather than an upcoming UFA, unfortunately for the Leafs that option will be hard to find. "I said it before and I'll say it again. There is a part of me that believes that the Leafs are relatively content, in the absence of something coming up that absolutely makes sense and is the perfect fit…
…I would be really surprised if the Leafs picked up a defenseman on an expiring contract–I guess they could–for future considerations. I think they're probably in an ideal world looking at something longer term, and as I said those are difficult to come up with. Maybe, what you see is what you get."Do you think the Leafs defensive core is strong enough for a playoff run?"
