The Toronto Maple Leafs are looking to bolster its blue line before the NHL trade deadline and one analyst shared a five-player blockbuster.
Toronto has been linked to centers and defensemen ahead of the March 7 deadline and NHL analyst David Corcoran of Editor in Leaf shared a trade pitch that sees the Maple Leafs acquiring Noah Dobson.
Maple Leafs acquire:
- Noah Dobson (25% retained)
Islanders acquire:
- Easton Cowan
- Max Domi
- Conor Timmins
- Miroslav Holinka (signing rights)
- 2026 first-round pick
The proposed deal would be a blockbuster and one that would signal Toronto is going all-in. The Maple Leafs would deal a first-round pick, their top prospect in Cowan, and two NHL players as well as the signing rights of a prospect for Dobson from the New York Islanders.
Dobson is in the final year of his three-year $12 million deal but he is an RFA at the end of the deal. He would be a top-four defenseman on the Maple Leafs. Dobson has skated in 46 games recording 6 goals and 18 assists for 24 points.
In return, the Maple Leafs would give up a first-round pick and Cowan who is the team’s top prospect. Cowan was their 2023 first-round pick. In the OHL this season, he’s skated in 32 games recording 18 goals and 25 assists for 43 points.
Toronto would also deal Domi who is a fan-favorite. The forward signed a four-year $15 million deal this offseason, but he has struggled. Domi has skated in 47 games recording 3 goals and 17 assists for 20 points.
The Maple Leafs would also deal Timmins who is a depth defenseman and would replace Dobson on the Islanders’ blue line. Holinka, meanwhile, was selected in the fifth round of the 2024 NHL draft.
Analyst Explains Maple Leafs Deal for Dobson
The proposed trade from Corcoran would be a blockbuster but it does seem steep for the Maple Leafs end.
However, Corcoran thinks Toronto needs to make a blockbuster deal to acquire the star defenseman.
“Dobson is a top-pairing defender who has averaged over 24-minutes a night in each of the last two seasons, while also registering 70-points in 2023-24,” Corcoran wrote. “We’ve all seen what happens when the team gets a top-end defenseman like Chris Tanev and how the game changes with him on the ice, it is time to pay whatever New York requires…
The biggest assets of this trade is obtaining the first-round pick and the reigning OHL MVP in Cowan and Holinka who is starting to make a name for himself. This is likely not enough for Dobson, but is in the ballpark of getting discussions going where Treliving should stop at nothing to acquire the former 12th-overall pick,” Corcoran added.
If the Maple Leafs feel like they have a roster to win it all, adding Dobson certainly improves their chances.
Insider Claims Dobson Isn’t Available
Dobson’s name has come up in trade rumors, but Frank Seravalli says he isn’t available in trades.
Seravalli says the Islanders could go through a rebuild, and Dobson will be a key part of that.
“I don’t have any indication that Noah Dobson is available,” Seravalli said on Oilersnation Everyday. “ I don’t understand why, from a New York Islander perspective, he would be available. If you’re trying to reboot this thing and become a team that two or three years from now could be a playoff team, you’re going to need Dobson and you’re going to need (Ilya) Sorokin and you’re going to need (Mathew) Barzal.”
Dobson was selected 12th overall in the 2018 NHL draft.
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