The Maple Leafs need to top the trade package Minnesota offered for Robert Thomas

The Minnesota Wild were interested in acquiring Robert Thomas this past trade deadline for Jesper Wallstedt and rookie Danila Yurov but St. Louis said no. That tells the Maple Leafs the price they need to pay to acquire him with Dennis Hildeby and Easton Cowan headed out - and that's just the start.

Thomas, 26, is someone who could be the perfect complement to Auston Matthews due to his elite two-way ability. While not as much of a playmaking wizard, he does have elite passing ability and vision, is a two-time 60-assist player, and is an above average defender who can ease the burden on Matthews.

This season he had 64 points in 64 games for the Blues, and has a very reliable track record with 460 points in 530 games (132 goals, 328 assists). You know he'll give you great defence, 65-75 points, and is only now getting into his prime.

However as good as Thomas would be on the flank, the help given to John Tavares is even more important. Thomas is an elite face-off man who can instantly become the new 2C and allow Tavares to move down the lineup and take on less responsibility the older he gets.

But the focus here is trying to get Toronto back to being as competitive as possible in as short a time as possible. Auston Matthews has a limited time left and even less patience, so if the team wants to prove they can win now then it's going to have to take a bit to bring Thomas in.

John Chayka has to prove to the captain that he's serious about winning and if Matthews goes yet another year without even sniffing the Cup Finals then not only does he have a foot out the door, his bags are already packed.

Thomas does have a no-trade clause so he would need to waive that first before Toronto even thinks of a deal, but with his name already heavily thrown about in rumours; he may be on the block.

Sacrificing some future assets for the chance to bring in a Cup winner like Thomas, who has such a perfect skillset to complement the team as a whole is a painful, yet necessary evil for the Maple Leafs - and who goes to the Blues is going to hurt some fans.

With the package of Wallstedt and Yurov the focal point and rejected, we know that it's going to take a young potential star goaltender, a young offensive star, and a sweetener to go alongside just in case.

That means if Toronto wanted to go after Thomas, they are going to need to trade Dennis Hildeby for starters then more than likely also package Easton Cowan in the deal. You're paying the price of win-now with a prime player as opposed to waiting for Cowan to become that superstar; it's an acceleration of the process.

That decision may hurt some fans but Cowan is still a wildcard and could breakout into a 75-80 point player or sit comfortably in the 40-50 range with a bit more of a pesky play style. If Toronto also has the chance to bring in Gavin McKenna, there's the new rookie to build around.

There's a great young core in St. Louis with Jimmy Snuggerud, Logan Mailloux, Dylan Holloway and Jake Neighbours, plus goaltender Joel Hofer - there's real promise.

Add Cowan and Hildeby into the mix and suddenly the Blues have become a young team with a lot of promise and room to grow. In the meantime, the Maple Leafs get a chance to bring in a dominant two-way player who fits seamlessly into the team's win-now window.

The fit is too perfect but the question of it being the right price is still up for debate.

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