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The Toronto Maple Leafs will be spending the next month trying to secure an Eastern Conference wild card spot, but GM Lou Lamoriello and the club’s scouting department are likely focusing on what they can do to improve their defensive corps, as it is clear that the blueline is the area that needs to be upgraded to turn the Leafs from a borderline playoff club to a potential Stanley Cup contender.
Toronto has an advantage over most NHL clubs going into a summer where the salary cap is not expected to go up significantly. The Leafs have a projected $17.2 Million in cap space and another $10.55 Million that can be opened up with injured forwards Nathan Horton and Joffrey Lupul being placed on LTIR.
The downside is that the upcoming free agent class is thin on impact defensemen after Kevin Shattenkirk and Karl Alzner, and the Leafs are not likely to spend what it would take to sign either on July 1, but the cap room does give Lamoriello flexibility to deal for blueliners still under contract that teams cannot afford or cannot protect in the upcoming expansion draft.
The Leafs could attempt to go bargain shopping in free agency, hoping that Dmitri Kulikov or former Leaf Cody Franson (who Toronto reportedly made inquiries about before March 1) could be a stop-gap solution until youngsters Travis Dermott and Andrew Nielsen are ready, but them fitting in Toronto’s top four is a longshot.
The deadline deal for Shattenkirk set up the Capitals as Stanley Cup favorites, but in the summer GM Brian MacLellan will have to make some difficult choices of who he can afford to re-sign, as Alzner and winger TJ Oshie are unrestricted, as well as RFA’s defenseman Dmitri Orlov and Evgeni Kuznetsov are restricted free agents and John Carlson can sign a new contract with a year left on his deal.
Anaheim has a similar dilemma, as they will want to protect Cam Fowler, Hampus Lindholm and Sami Vatanen, but have to protect veteran Kevin Bieksa because of his no movement clause. Even if Bieksa waives his NMC, the Ducks would still be leaving 25-year-old blueliner Josh Manson exposed.
The Leafs and Anaheim are frequent trade partners and their young depth at forward and the expiring contract of winger James van Riemsdyk might be enticing enough to make a deal beneficial for both clubs.
Another option is the European free agent route, which the Leafs hit a home run with the signing of defenseman Nikita Zaitsev. There is not another Zaitsev available, but 24-year-old Metallurg blueliner Viktor Antipin (who played with Zaitsev in the World Championships last May) could be a candidate to come over to North America.
What will the Leafs do? Where will they find the defensive help they need? Those answers will come in June and July.
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The Leafs take on the Carolina Hurricanes at the PNC Arena on Saturday. Toronto won a pair of critical games over Detroit and Philadelphia during the week, but could not overtake the New York Islanders, who maintained a one-point lead for the second wildcard spot with road victories in Edmonton and Vancouver.
Boston widened their lead for third place in the Atlantic to four points on Saturday afternoon with a 2-1 win over Philadelphia at TD Gardens, as Drew Stafford score for the Bruins with five seconds remaining in regulation.
Toronto had an optional morning skate in Raleigh on Saturday and are expected to go with the same lineup that beat the Flyers on Thursday.
The only exception may be inserting Martin Marincin for Alexey Marchenko. Marchenko played just 11:32 against Philadelphia and sat most of the third period.
Frederik Andersen and Cam Ward will be the starters in goal.
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