Elliotte Friedman Report Sparks Push for Brad Treliving to Target Rising Star Defenseman From Division Rival
Photo credit: Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images
The Toronto Maple Leafs need some youth in their defensive corps, and should take a look at Buffalo's Bowen Byram, according to Elliotte Friedman.
As focus shifts to the offseason for Brad Treliving and the Leafs, there are going to be drastic changes in the coming weeks, that could start as early as Thursday after an MLSE Board of Directors meeting that is scheduled to take place.
While a lot of that involves the team's direction, it may lead to sweeping changes in starting at the top.
But in terms of roster management, the team is going to need to improve on their youth and puck-moving on the blue line and should start with looking at Bowen Byram.
Elliotte Friedman Reports Bowen Byram Being Shopped Around
According to Elliotte Friedman on his latest 32 Thoughts podcast, the Buffalo Sabres are currently open to offers for young offensive defenseman Bowen Byram:
At the very least what's going on is that the Sabres are gauging his market value. Byram needs a contract, he's got two more years until he's an unrestricted free agent, so Buffalo doesn't have to do anything here. - Elliotte Friedman, 32 Thoughts
While Byram is a restricted free agent, and Buffalo can easily retain him for a few more years before he becomes unrestricted, it seems they want to see if a team is willing to bite for a young, puck-moving defender.
Toronto Maple Leafs Should Target Bowen Byram Regardless Of Divisional Rival Status
Given that both Toronto needs a puck-moving defenseman besides Morgan Rielly, and someone to desperately give their back end some youth, Byram fits the bill perfectly.
He's only 23 years old, but has five seasons already under his belt, and while he hasn't had a lot of team success with Buffalo; he's played very well despite that.
In 246 games, Byram has 110 points (33G, 77A), 313 blocks, 337 hits, and a plus-26 rating.
This past season, he crushed his previous career high in points (29) with 38 (7G, 31A) and a plus-11 being only one of nine players with a positive rating on the Sabres.
His relative youth would be a massive boost given that Toronto's average age on defense is 30.5, and with them locked up long-term, they are only getting older.
That means they need to find ways to get younger without sacrificing NHL-quality play, and going after Byram would get both done at once.
He would also certainly help Toronto's defense on the power play, as they might now shift towards a traditional two-defender unit, opening the door for him to play on the first or second unit (either as Rielly's sidekick or quarterbacking the latter).
Bowen Byram Would Be Great, But Extremely Costly
One issue that may be a factor in acquiring Byram would be his cost, and not just financially in the future. A former Top-5 pick, he was traded for another huge prospect in Casey Mittelstadt.
Plus, Byram has actually excelled in Buffalo meanwhile Mittelstadt never really got his footing in Colorado, and was traded to Boston as part of the Charlie Coyle deal.
That's the type of player Buffalo is going to expect in return, and while Toronto might be able to offer someone like Noah Chadwick along with some other pieces (Pontus Holmberg, Nick Robertson, Topi Niemala); it might not be enough.
They also don't have a first-round pick for the next three drafts, and their best chance would be packaging their 2025 and 2027 second/third rounders with Chadwick.
Is that an overpayment? With Chadwick being an unknown in the NHL, Buffalo would need to make sure that he's worth giving up Byram and Toronto may need to sweeten that pot to make it happen.
Whatever the cost, it's going to be an expensive one and the Sabres are certainly not going to let their prized defender go for nothing more than a premium price.
Whether or not Toronto is prepared to pay that remains to be seen, but they probably should at least give it a shot.
| POLL | ||
MAI 22 | 698 ANSWERS Elliotte Friedman Report Sparks Push for Brad Treliving to Target Rising Star Defenseman From Division Rival Do you think Bowen Byram makes sense for the Toronto Maple Leafs to acquire this offseason? | ||
| Yes | 436 | 62.5 % |
| No | 262 | 37.5 % |
| List of polls | ||
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