Toronto Maple Leafs Are All-In After Jake Muzzin Acquisition

Trading for Jake Muzzin confirms that the Toronto Maple Leafs are in it to win it right now.

The Toronto Maple Leafs pushed their chips into the middle of the table with the acquisition of defenseman Jake Muzzin as the club has gone all-in on trying to capture a Stanley Cup.

With just under a month to go before the NHL’s Feb. 25 trade deadline, General Manager Kyle Dubas decided to get to work early by acquiring Muzzin from the Los Angeles Kings for minor-league forward Carl Grundstrom, unsigned 2018 second-round draft pick Sean Durzi, and the team’s 2019 first-round draft pick.

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The trade provides the Maple Leafs with what they desperately needed most. Muzzin’s size and experience give Toronto a legitimate top-four defenseman. He brings a Stanley Cup ring to the locker room along with a 6-foot-3, 213-pound frame. Muzzin’s known for blocking shots, dishing out the occasional hit, and providing great puck moving abilities exiting his own zone.

At only 29 years old with eight years of experience under his belt, he also comes with a cap hit of only $4 million for the remainder of this season and the 2019-20 season as well. Acquiring such a cost-effective player is a significant win for Dubas as he’ll have to open up the cheque book this summer with new extensions for Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. The new deals will no doubt handcuff the team’s ability to fill out the rest of the roster making Muzzin’s $4 million cap hit next season seem like a bargain for a top-four defenseman.

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Another win for Dubas in this deal was his ability to acquire the defender without giving up anything on his main roster. Rumors have circulated for months the Maple Leafs have been hovering around the Carolina Hurricanes’ trio of defenseman but that the price would require someone off the main roster or top prospects Timothy Liljegren or Rasmus Sandin.

Truth be told, Muzzin is a much better player than any potential Hurricane defenseman the Maple Leafs could have acquired. Although, the likes of Dougie Hamilton, Justin Faulk, and Brett Pesce are right-handed defensemen, something the Maple Leafs lack, and Muzzin is left-handed, something Toronto has plenty of. Muzzin’s size, Stanley Cup experience, cap hit, and the price to acquire him, all significantly outweigh the importance of the righty/lefty argument. In short, the Maple Leafs got the best player at the cheapest price.

By not giving up anything of groundbreaking value to acquire Muzzin, Dubas is still armed with assets to continue to add to his roster. It’s no secret Toronto is short on size and grit at forward and giving the impending cap crunch coming next season, Dubas will look to continue to add to the roster.

Maple Leaf fans will dream of a Wayne Simmonds or Michael Ferland joining the roster but the price to acquire either may be too rich for Dubas. However, even the likes of a Kevin Hayes or Patrick Maroon could go a long way in providing the necessary sandpaper to help push Toronto over the top come playoff time.

It was only two seasons ago the deadline acquisition of Brian Boyle did wonders for the club despite a first-round playoff exit. This time around a similar move with a much more experienced team could be the missing piece needed to make noise in the spring.

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In the meantime, Dubas can pat himself on the back as Muzzin’s acquisition will have a trickledown effect felt throughout the entire roster. If early indications are true and Muzzin joins Morgan Reilly on the top-pairing, then it greatly eases the workload for veteran Ron Hainsey who can move down to the third-pairing. He’ll join second-year player Travis Dermott in an attempt to help provide the same stability and growth for Dermott that Hainsey was able to aid Reilly with since the veteran signed in Toronto.

It’ll likely be the biggest move Dubas makes prior to the trade deadline, but make no mistake he is far from done.

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