Toronto Maple Leafs Lose Defenseman to Utah Hockey Club, Per Elliotte Friedman

With the Toronto Maple Leafs getting reinforcements back and their injury woes hopefully behind them, the team needed to make a few changes. Yesterday, the team placed Alex Nylander and Dakota Mermis on waivers.

While no news yet on the status of Nylander, Toronto did end up losing out on Mermis as the Utah HC claimed the defenseman off waivers, originally posted on X by insider Elliotte Friedman

Friedman later clarified that the rest of the other waiver assignments cleared, therefore it's presumed Alex Nylander has cleared and will head back to help the Marlies in the AHL.

Utah has struggled with defense this season especially with injuries to Sean Durzi and John Marino, so their pick up of Mermis is not surprising. With both of their defensemen out for several months, and a steep drop-off after a hot start to the season, the NHL's newest club needed to stop the bleeding.

Besides Mikhail Sergachev, Utah's defense isn't too spectacular and could use a younger veteran like Mermis in their lineup. While they have Ian Cole, Robert Bortuzzo, and Kevin Connauton; they are all 34+ years old.

Mermis could step in for Cole or Vladislav Kolyachonok once healthy, and if given a chance has the potential to be a strong depth player for Utah.

He signed with the Maple Leafs this summer for the league minimum after spending seven seasons split with Minnesota and Arizona.

He has 12 points in 74 career NHL games and Utah will no doubt enjoy his potential as a offensive defenseman, but he may be a bit to get back on the ice after dealing with jaw surgery earlier this season.

Mermis was signed to be defensive depth for the Maple Leafs but only recently took the ice on his own as he tried to get back into the swing of things. He last played April 7, 2023 against Chicago as a member of the Minnesota Wild.