The Decision That Could Define Brad Treliving's Maple Leafs Tenure
Photo credit: Dan Hamilton-Imagn Images
If Brad Treliving decides to go all-in this season, he has one crucial priority he needs to focus on, and if he doesn't add some serious firepower; it might ruin him and his reputation.
For the Toronto Maple Leafs and Brad Treliving, there is a lot of hope surrounding what this new-look lineup could look like considering all the changes made and how important it was that the DNA of the team be altered in some way to make up for their playoff misfortunes.
They have done good work but have much more to do, and clearing out some roster and cap space seems to be the top priority.
But it should be a priority as well to use that open space not to grab themselves a top-six forward, but instead bolster their back end even more and truly add that offensive game changer to take them to the next level...because his reputation might depend on it.
Maple Leafs Needs To Target Top Defenseman ASAP
For all the talk about adding a top-six forward, Toronto has more than enough firepower up front and in the minors to warrant certain names moving in and out. Beside Morgan Rielly and Oliver Ekman-Larsson; two guys who haven't necessarily stood out, they have only a handful of options.
William Villeneuve could step in, so too could Henry Thrun. But they are both very young and lack the real experience or game changing offense the team needs.
But beyond that, who do they have? Not really anyone. For all the excitement about adding some staunch defenders, it seemed to slip the minds of management that they needed someone to help facilitate offense back there at times.
The team was linked to names such as Dougie Hamilton and Erik Karlsson, and while the Maple Leafs don't have the assets to make a trade work outright, they can use some creativity and dangle some intriguing pieces to get it done.
They also should take a serious stab at trying to lure Colton Parayko over although the cost in that might end up being way too much for the Leafs to stomach.
But without a move being made, you're looking at a very solid if unspectacular defensive lineup that will certainly prevent shots, but definitely won't produce many either.
Why Brad Treliving's Decision Could Decide His Fate in Toronto
Without a true power play quarterback who can actually move the puck consistently (sorry, Morgan) the fact remains that Toronto hasn't had the caliber of defenseman who can facilitate the offense since oh gosh, Tomas Kaberle? Rielly was great at times but took a big leap back last season.
Known for making last-minute blockbusters and finding that piece he needs, Brad Treliving is under immense pressure from all sides to find success, and there's a strong chance that without that puck-mover, the loss of playmaking from Mitch Marner, and a potentially unhealthy Auston Matthews; things are going to crumble.
Is Keith Pelley going to fire Brad Treliving? Probably not, but it will warrant a very close examination of how the team can always get so close, but come up short every single time.
Perhaps the key lies in picking up that new #1 offensive option on the back end.
At this point, they're really running out of options.
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