Leafs trade Andrew Nielsen to Flames for Morgan Klimchuk

Not exactly the transaction that we all want to be announced this week, but it’s a transaction nonetheless. Leafs trade Marlies defenceman Andrew Nielsen to the Calgary Flames for AHL forward Morgan Klimchuk.

Very much a “change of scenery” trade for both clubs, the one-for-one trend continues on as they swap players.

Andrew Nielsen was a 3rd-round pick for the Leafs back in 2015 – the 6-foot-4 defenceman is currently in his third full year of professional hockey. He has only played eight games for the Marlies this season, sometimes being a healthy scratch, but I suppose he still shows some value.

The 23-year-old forward Morgan Klimchuk was drafted by the Flames in the first round of the 2013 NHL Draft. Not quite living up to that first-round pedigree, Klimchuk is now in his fourth-straight season for the Stockton Heat. He made his NHL debut last year but only played in one game for the Flames.

Last year, he scored 19 goals and had a total of 40 points in 62 games for the Heat, good for second among his teammates in points.

This trade was able to break up some of the Marlies logjam on the blueline, as we expect more shuffling around with some key Leafs acquisitions this coming week.