Matthew Knies' name is getting more traction on the trade market and with the Sabres potentially offering the fourth overall pick - it may be worth considering.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are getting a lot of interest in young power forward Matthew Kniesthough John Chayka seems a little hesitant to actually pull the trigger and is seemingly trying to play the field to see if anyone is willing to overpay.
He's reported to want to get into the top-10 in Friday's draft, and on top of that wants to add either a top-six player or a top-four defender and a prospect on top. As we saw with the Brady Tkachuk and Bowen Byram deals, some teams are willing to throw everything they can in order to acquire who they want, and a team may do the same for Knies.
Insider reports the Sabres may be willing to pay a heavy price to acquire Matthew Knies
And speaking of the Byram deal, it seems like the Buffalo Sabres are front and centre of working on a potential deal and aren't afraid to give Toronto the fourth overall pick they acquired in that trade with Chicago to get it done.
RG Media's Marco D'Amico has been a force on Wednesday with regard to potential trades and rumblings and his latest on Buffalo and Knies show they are progressing towards some type of framework but you also can't count out the San Jose Sharks:
Word of discussions with Buffalo and the 4th overall pick. San Jose also said to be of interest here as well. Montreal remains interested, but hard to compete with the above teams.
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Maple Leafs fans would feel like anything less than the fourth overall pick in addition to players like a Konsta Helenius or Ryan McLeod on top of other picks would be a horrible deal, and the anxiety around trading a potential top-25 player in the NHL is scary without a doubt.
After seeing what Tkachuk and Byram brought in, John Chayka can't just willy-nilly take any deal and he needs to scour every potential option to get as many premium assets as possible if you're going to give away such a coveted player.
It may be better for Toronto to see if Columbus would rather part with Zach Werenski instead
While it would be a really exciting get for Chayka to have the chance to add someone like Carson Carels, Chase Reid, or Keaton Verhoeff to the mix as future studs, the Maple Leafs should look to a surefire option that's looking for a new home.
Zach Werenski is reportedly discussing his future with the Blue Jackets after the draft, and if the Maple Leafs play their cards right and hold onto Knies while also improving their draft stock through other deals, then they can use Knies as a bargaining chip.
He'd instantly be Toronto's #1 defenceman and is just coming off a Norris Trophy win. The one-two punch of him and Darren Raddysh in the top-four is a nightmare for any team and the two of them on the power-play with Auston Matthews, Gavin McKenna and William Nylander will feed families.
The only problem is that he will need an extension in a couple years, but if he's confident that Toronto can be competitive especially if they shore up their goaltending then he could be open to sticking around long-term.
That would be an incredible turnaround for Toronto to go from Morgan Rielly as the #1 to suddenly being spoiled and having two ridiculously good offensive players on the blueline.
John Chayka can make it happen too, but it's going to cost Matthew Knies though at this point if you're going to go all-in then go all-in.
Should Toronto trade Matthew Knies for at least the fourth overall pick?
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