Were the Toronto Maple Leafs Close to Moving a Defenseman?

Could a Toronto Maple Leafs Defensemen Have Been on the Move at the Deadline?

Dave Pagnotta of The Fourth Period joined Sirius XM NHL Network following the Trade Deadline and was asked about a trade that was close to getting done, but didn’t last a minute. Was there a Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman on the move that stayed?

NHLRumors.com Transcriptions

NHL Rumors: Toronto Maple Leafs, and the Montreal Canadiens

Host: “So you’re obviously working the lines all day, and you’ve got to leave us with a nugget or a gem for the listeners here. So what was the one deal you were sure was going to go through or was close to getting through, that maybe fell apart last minute, that you can share with the group that won’t burn any sources for sure.”

Dave Pagnotta: “It sounded going into , before all of this, before everything played out, it sounded like Oliver Ekman-Larsson was going to be on the move. I think there were people in that organization and on that team that believed that OEL was, was going to be dealt. I think there was clearly an understanding that it was Bobby McMann who was going, and Scott Laughton was going, but OEL was somebody that I think a lot of people in that organization thought was going to be on the move.

So I’m a little bit surprised from that perspective. I will say he didn’t want to go. I’m sure he’s thrilled that he didn’t, and he wants to stay in Toronto and be part of whatever the cleanup is going to be, with this group. But he didn’t want to go so, and I know the Leafs set a pretty, pretty high bar for him.

But as I said, the one that surprised me coming into , , and this , there was a pretty strong indication that there was a good chance he was going to move, and it didn’t happen.

NHL Rumors: Were the Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens Talking Matthew Knies?

So that’s certainly, definitely a top the list that I’m a little bit surprised about. Patrick Laine. Montreal, they tried to pull that off, and obviously, it didn’t happen. I guess I’m a little bit surprised on that end too, because now the Canadiens are going to have to navigate how things go with Laine moving forward.

So, but the big one in terms of the guys that, the names were there and things seemed close, OEL, for me, is the one I’m a little bit surprised about.”

NHLRumors.com Note: Oliver Ekman-Larsson was held out for a couple of games heading into the NHL Trade Deadline. However, OEL expressed his desire to stay in Toronto. Not to mention his family was welcoming a new baby to the fold. So it wasn’t ideal for him to move. Many wonder whether the Montreal Canadiens were going after OEL to help them in the short term. Right now, he remains in Toronto. Could that change next season, depending on the direction of the team?

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