Maple Leafs acquire Tyson Barrie from Avalanche for Nazem Kadri
In a blockbuster move, the Toronto Maple Leafs are sending Nazem Kadri, Calle Rosen, and a 2020 third round pick to the Colorado Avalanche. Going the other way are Tyson Barrie, Alexander Kerfoot, and a 2020 sixth-round pick.
Both the Colorado Avalanche and Toronto Maple Leafs are looking to make changes to their roster this offseason. It turns out they were perfect trade partners, as the two sides have pulled off a blockbuster move that fills holes for both teams.
Heading to Toronto are defenseman Tyson Barrie, forward Alexander Kerfoot, and a 2020 sixth-round pick. Colorado is receiving forward Nazem Kadri, defenseman Calle Rosen, and a third-round pick in 2020. The Avs will be retaining 50% of Barrie’s $5.5 million salary.
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Barrie has one year left on his contract. Kerfoot is a restricted free agent. Kadri has three years left on his deal with a $4.5 million cap hit. Rosen has a $750,000 cap hit for the net two seasons.
Now, this is significant for both teams, so let’s break down what each team got in this massive blockbuster.
Maple Leafs
The Maple Leafs had to get creative to upgrade their roster with minimal cap space. This trade nets them Barrie, who they have reportedly coveted for quite some time. Giving Kadri is rough, but Kerfoot should replace him at a cheaper cost. The big thing about Barrie is he’s a right-handed defenseman. Toronto really needed to add one. They had to get creative to get him.
Toronto saves about $2.5 million on this trade. Colorado retaining 50% of Barrie’s contract is where most of the savings come from. Kerfoot had 42 points last season while playing about 14 minutes a game while Kadri has 44 while playing about 16 minutes a game.
However, they played about the same amount of total time because Kadri missed a few games. Kerfoot shouldn’t get much more than $3 million a year.
This helps the Leafs get some cap space to sign Mitch Marner to a lucrative extension. They now have about $8.065 million of cap space (after factoring in Kerfoot’s next deal), which is more than enough to sign Marner.
It also helps protect them against an offer sheet, which is apparently a thing again thanks to the Montreal Canadiens. Remember, teams can go over the salary cap in the offseason by 10%. Also, Nathan Horton’s deal isn’t on the LTIR yet, which will save money.
Avalanche
The Avalanche weren’t going to trade Barrie unless it helped them immediately. This trade does that. Kadri is an upgrade over Kerfoot and is a very good shutdown center. He didn’t handle being in a third-line role too well last season. This trade gets him back in the second-line role he’s comfortable in.
Rosen is a pretty nice defenseman, albeit a young one. The Leafs liked him quite a bit. Rosen has a cheap cap hit for the next two seasons, and most importantly, he’s left-handed. The Avalanche needed a bit of help there.
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Verdict
You rarely see a hockey trade that makes sense for both sides. But this one honestly does. It’s hard to pick a winner here. I would lean ever so slightly towards the Leafs, but the Avalanche did quite well in this trade too.