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Dreger: Maple Leafs among teams interested in Blues captain Brayden Schenn
Photo credit: Stan Szeto-Imagn Images
Feb 7, 2025, 12:10 ESTUpdated: Feb 7, 2025, 13:20 EST
The Toronto Maple Leafs are reportedly among the teams that will monitor St. Louis Blues captain Brayden Schenn if the Blues decide to put him on the trade market.
TSN’s Darren Dreger appeared on Thursday’s edition of Insider Trading, where he was asked about Schenn and whether he was about to be made available for trade. Dreger stressed that any hypothetical move won’t be easy to pull off given that Schenn has a no-trade clause (NTC), but he also believes Blues GM Doug Armstrong could look to make a shakeup with his team underachieving.
“Some believe that there’s potential of Brayden Schenn being traded by the St. Louis Blues. He is their captain, he does have a full no-trade clause, so it is a complicated process. But we also know Doug Armstrong, the general manager, very well in how aggressive he can be. And the Blues are underachieving right now. So yes, the top contenders looking at the market, looking for a centre are interested, and that would include the Toronto Maple Leafs.The return would have to be mammoth. Is there a team that would be willing to pay it? It’s too soon to say, but I do believe that the Blues are at least testing or gauging the market to see what that level of interest is and, ultimately, probably have to make that call in the weeks ahead.”
Schenn is the latest centre an insider has connected to the Leafs this week after ESPN’s Kevin Weekes said the team had expressed interest in Buffalo Sabres centre Dylan Cozens. Reports suggest that the Leafs have been looking to acquire someone as high as a 2C, meaning that there is a good chance they are trying to make a significant splash ahead of the deadline, which is the right call given where this team is at.
GM Brad Treliving has made it known for months that his top priority is to shore up the Leafs’ depth down the middle, as there is a steep dropoff from Auston Matthews and John Tavares to the rest of the pack. His preference is to acquire one that is a strong two-way centre that can chip in offensively while also being a reliable shutdown option for defensive situations. The lack of versatility with the middle six is something the Leafs would like to address in said move so they can comfortably switch some of the top guns back and forth.
Although he’s on the wrong side of 30, Schenn would fit the bill for what the Leafs are trying to find on the trade market. He has proven to be a versatile forward who can be used in any situation that his team asks of him. Schenn won’t be your team’s top scorer, but he will certainly be in the upper portion of the leaderboards as he has surpassed the 50-point plateau seven times in his career. He also isn’t afraid to play physically, as evidenced by his 141 hits to this point along with 50.1% efficiency in the faceoffs.
This season has been a trying one for him offensively, though the Blues as a whole struggle to generate a lot of offence. At the time of filing, Schenn is fifth on the team in scoring with 30 points (11 goals and 19 assists) in 55 games played. His underlying numbers are also not super stellar at 5v5, reflective of being on a middling team.
CF% | FF% | SF% | GF% | XGF% | SCF% | HDCF% | HDGF% | PDO |
47.96 | 46.82 | 47.00 | 46.88 | 46.72 | 46.59 | 49.81 | 38.46 | 1.000 |
While he has not been outstanding this season, which would give some fans pause at the reported ‘mammoth’ asking price, one thing worth keeping in mind is the fact that a hypothetical Schenn trade means he would be reunited with head coach Craig Berube. The Blues captain has spoken highly of his former bench boss and has long respected how Berube conducts himself to the players as well as appreciating his straightforward messaging.
“I would say just kind of demanding, and guys are probably getting a grasp of what he’s looking for,” Schenn said on Leafs Morning Take on October 23. “It’s kind of black and white. He wants guys to play a certain way. He’s not going to take the sticks out of their top players’ hands, that’s for sure. He definitely wants an identity. He wants the top guys to play a certain way, when that happens, everyone else follows. That’s kind of the way he coaches and I think guys respect it.”
A reunion with his former coach could be what helps get Schenn back on track, especially since he would be going from a mediocre team to a contender looking to get over the hump. And he would not need much time to get adjusted to Berube’s system, given he played in it for the better part of six seasons.
While it remains to be seen if a Schenn trade will indeed come to fruition, his two-way play and term beyond this year help explain why the Leafs are among the teams interested in his services, as Dreger reported.
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