The Toronto Maple Leafs have been a team seeming like they need a new defenseman for months and months.
The main issue is that Morgan Reilly doesn't feel good enough for the role he's being called to play.
And yeah, the Leafs added Darren Raddysh over the summer, but there might still be more they can do.
One name who has come up before and will come up again is Zach Werenski, the superstar defenseman with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
The latest train of thought among smart NHL minds seems to think that while things calmed down in Columbus for a while, a Werenski trade could still be in play.
And if that's possible, then the Maple Leafs' fanbase will be paying attention.
Sportsnet's Michael Amato wrote Sunday that it wouldn't be a surprise if Werenski trade chatter picked up sooner rather than later.
"All this isn't necessarily to say that Werenski will suddenly demand to be traded, but the Blue Jackets are running out of time to show him that this team is on the cusp of being a true contender," Amato writes. "Columbus is a great place to play, but it isn't a destination for a lot of players. The Blue Jackets have to put a winning product on the ice to attract and retain players. If Werenski is looking at the current state of things in Columbus, he can't be filled with optimism."
Werenski is one of the most impressive puck-moving, play-making defensemen in the entire NHL. Just based on his skillset, every team would want him.
Obviously it's not that simple. Things depend on player cost and salary cap space and all those NHL logistical concerns.
But as far as how it looks on the ice, it makes sense that the Leafs, and just about everyone else, would consider Werenski.
There is one thing that could be working in Toronto's favor here: They've recently completed a big trade with the Blue Jackets.
The trade that sent Matthew Knies to the Blue Jackets and brought Kirill Marchenko to the Maple Leafs — it was finalized on the day before the Leafs kicked off the 2026-27 NHL season — a Monday deal before a Tuesday game.
These front offices know how to get a deal across the finish line, and they probably have an idea of which other players in each organization would be the most appealing to one another.
If anyone could pull off a Werenski trade based in part on negotiation familiarity, it would be the Maple Leafs with the Blue Jackets.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
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