According to TSN, Rick Nash, the subject of a lot of NHL trade rumors, would accept a trade to the Toronto Maple Leafs
The New York Rangers have the most polarizing rental forward in the NHL – Rick Nash. Depending on who you ask, he’s either a huge difference maker or a bum who can’t produce in the playoffs. You won’t find too many people in the middle in this debate. Regardless of how you feel about Nash, he’s going to get the Rangers a huge return. The latest NHL trade rumors have him tied to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Recently, Nash gave the Rangers his blessing to trade him by handing in his no-trade list of 12 teams he can be traded to without his express permission. Several years ago, he reportedly didn’t have any Canadian teams on this list. But Frank Seravalli of TSN is reporting the Leafs are on the list of teams Nash would accept a trade to.
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To be fair, the time Nash didn’t include any Canadian teams on his list, all the Canadian teams were bad. So maybe this played into it a little bit. Nash would be a nice fit on the Leafs. He’s certainly familiar with Toronto head coach Mike Babcock, who served as his Olympics coach in 2010 and 2014.
Nash is currently boosting his trade value, as he’s in the midst of one of his patented hot streaks. He has 17 goals and 10 assists for 27 points in 56 games. However, it’s worth noting Nash’s primary center, Mika Zibanejad, got injured this year. He did alright with Kevin Hayes, but it took them a while to get used to each other.
My Take
Personally, Nash would be a nice fit with the Leafs. He would be a great addition to their shutdown line, which already features the underrated Nazem Kadri. Nash is such a great two-way forward. Even when he’s not scoring, he plays impressively in all three zones.
The Leafs lineup is already quite lethal. Adding Nash would give them another potentially dangerous weapon. At the very least, it would give them a top-nine forward group that would match up well against anyone in the NHL.
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Toronto has salary cap issues, but they could always trade someone whose contract is being buried in the AHL. Eric Fehr immediately comes to mind. Also, the Leafs would love to upgrade their defense. But with there not being any slamdunk options available, it would make sense for Toronto to go after someone Babcock is familiar with like Nash.
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