Maple Leafs' answer on defense sits with their most bitter rival

If the Maple Leafs want to bolster their blue line then they need to swallow their pride and make a deal with their most bitter rivals - the Montreal Canadiens.

There needs to be a bit of an improvement defensively for the Toronto Maple Leafs this season. They haven't been terrible but at the same time, they are still getting hemmed in their own zone and giving up too many open looks.

The team has been linked to several names floating around the rumour mill including Simon Edvinsson, Erik Karlsson, and even potentially Quinn Hughes (though that's more fantasy than reality). All of them would give Toronto a boost, though it will come at a heavy cost.

Toronto and Montreal can come together for a rare trade

Instead, the team should look to their most heated and bitter rivals for over a century to get the help they need.

According to Frank Seravalli, the Montreal Canadiens' future blue line may be causing issues for their current players as names like Kaiden Guhle and Mike Matheson could be pushed out sooner than later:

The Canadiens...have to consider how they see Adam Engstrom, David Reinbacher and maybe Luke Mittelstadt fitting into their plans. Any of them could move...but their play may instead force out Kaiden Guhle or, eventually, Mike Matheson.

Montreal losing either defender would sting, though with their great number of prospects who are just about ready to make the jump to the NHL - they have some expendable assets.

While Guhle makes sense from a future perspective when it comes to the Maple Leafs, they need a much better puck-mover and someone who can be elite at both ends of the ice which is where Matheson steps in.

Toronto looks for veteran help from an unlikely source

Matheson, 32, has been one of the most underrated defensemen in the NHL the past few years. Over the last three seasons he has 24 goals, 130 points, 504 blocks, and 180 hits in nearly 25 minutes of ice time - with solid possession numbers at 5v5.

He's someone who can add help on both the power-play and penalty kill, he's got some snot in his game and doesn't mind mixing it up, and can help settle the Maple Leafs blue line from both an offensive and defensive standpoint.

Matheson would be a great replacement for Oliver Ekman-Larsson on the third pair, or he can swap with Morgan Rielly on the second pair though putting Dakota Mermis (the current 3 RHD) with Rielly may cause fans to have a panic attack.

Montreal won't take a minor haul for Matheson but if the Maple Leafs were to dangle some of their draft capital, I am sure that Kent Hughes won't have any issues stealing those away - especially with no retention on Matheson's $6M deal.

Matheson is a name who may be overlooked when it comes to being a difference-maker, but if John Chayka is worried about trading his top assets, then a package with some mid-tier ones (plus money out) could be enough to bring in the piece they never know they needed.

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