While the Toronto Maple Leafs have been recently linked to acquiring a middle-six centre before the trade deadline, don’t count out GM Brad Treliving trying to upgrade his blueline.

Daily Faceoff’s Matt Larkin has listed the Maple Leafs as a potential trade destination for Philadelphia Flyers’ defenceman Rasmus Ristolainen. The 30-year-old 6-foot-4 blueliner is signed through the 2026-27 season, carrying a $5.1 million cap hit. Ristolainen does not own any trade protection and can be moved at will.

There are certainly some pros and cons for acquiring the Finnish blueliner, and Larkin was sure to point out why he’d make sense for the Maple Leafs. “While Chris Tanev has been exactly what Toronto dreamed he’d be, bringing his elite shutdown skills to the right side of their blueline, Toronto needs another top-four guy,” scribed Larkin.

“Ideally, they’d have one of Philippe Myers or Conor Timmins in the lineup and on the third pair rather than legitimately needing both or playing Oliver Ekman-Larsson on his right (inferior) side when they dress Simon Benoit. Ristolainen would instantly repair the problem.”

Ristolainen is averaging 20:35 of ice time per game, he’s chipped in with two goals, and 14 points in 48 games this season, and has landed 78 hits, while blocking 74 shots. The towering blueliner has been a staple on the Flyers’ first penalty kill unit, and while he’d give the Maple Leafs another option for their top four, he’s not someone who jumps off the page as a defenceman to bolster their power play.

Flyers GM Daniel Briere was asked on Tuesday about the potential of moving Ristolainen before the trade deadline, and while Briere admitted he wasn’t shopping his defenceman, the Flyers executive has received some trade interest in the right-handed blueliner.

At $5 million per season, there’s certainly a level of risk involved with this potential trade, plus, it’s hard to say what Briere would be looking for in return for Ristolainen. Larkin points out that Treliving has been rather conservative at previous trade deadlines, so it will be interesting to see how aggressive and willing to spend the Leafs GM winds up being before March 7.

Ristolainen’s cap hit is a roadblock in any potential deal involving the Maple Leafs, as they’re currently projected to have $1.3 million in available deadline cap space. While someone like Jani Hakanpaa or Conor Timmins could be candidates to be involved in this trade, it’s going to be tough to get the dollars to make sense under the cap. Other potential Leafs trade candidates, if this deal materializes, would be David Kampf up front and his $2.4-million cap hit.

Adding salary isn’t out of the question for Treliving and company before the trade deadline, it’s just going to take some creativity to pull off. There are also some major decisions coming on the contract extensions for John Tavares and Mitch Marner, along with depth forward Steven Lorentz, and pending restricted free agent Matthew Knies. Treliving must be careful to not tie his own hands financially entering this upcoming offseason. Perhaps Briere would consider retaining some salary in the trade, however, that’s certainly going to cost Treliving and the Maple Leafs a sweetener in the deal.

The Flyers enter Wednesday’s action with a 22-20-6 record and are currently two points out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The two teams matchup next on Mar.25 in Toronto, just a couple of weeks after the trade deadline.