Toronto made just one move today, but in the last two weeks, they have made two deals involving defensemen. On February 29, the Anaheim Ducks traded Ilya Lyubushkin to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for two draft picks in a three-way trade.
Additionally, Kirill Slepets, an unsigned prospect from Carolina who plays in the Kontinental Hockey League of Russia, has the right to play for Toronto.
Joel Edmundson was traded by the Washington Capitals to the Maple Leafs yesterday in exchange for two draft picks. On trade deadline day, the only player acquired by the Maple Leafs is Connor Dewar.
After the trade deadline at 3 p.m., Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving spoke to the media, saying that although the trade call was not finished yet, they had added Dewar to their roster.
His ability to play center ice hockey with great defensive responsibility is what drew us to him. You can never have too many center-ice players, in my opinion. He can execute the penalty kill with ease. We wanted to see if we could help ourselves in a particular area,” Treliving stated.
“In the midst, he gives us more depth. We have discussed areas we would like to address with Sheldon (Keefe) a lot over the last few weeks, and that is where we believe Connor fits in with us. We have spoken with him briefly today.
“Hopefully, he can assist us on the penalty kill. He is a very competitive player and a sound defensive player.”
