The summer of John Chayka continues at a dizzying pace! Toronto continued its defensive overhaul, trading Brandon Carlo to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for the No. 73 and No. 76 overall picks in the 2026 NHL Draft.

It’s worth combating some revisionist history, to start: Carlo’s acquisition made sense at the time, as the Maple Leafs were trying to maximize their win-now window, in what turned out to be Mitch Marner’s final season with the team. Carlo was acquired in exchange for Fraser Minten, a fourth-round pick and a first-round pick that has since been deferred, after the Maple Leafs won the rights to select Gavin McKenna. It could’ve backfired miserably. The thinking was to bring in a shutdown defenceman of Carlo’s calibre, as the Atlantic Division-leading Leafs pushed their chips in ahead of the 2024-25 playoff run. Carlo never found his form while being primarily partnered with Morgan Rielly.

After undergoing foot surgery this year, Carlo was never the same player that he showed during his tenure with the Bruins. He was well-liked by his teammates and a convivial presence with the media, but the on-ice results never came to fruition in his two seasons with the Maple Leafs.

As for what it means for the upcoming season, Toronto continues its overhaul. Darren Raddysh is on board for the next eight years, while the Maple Leafs are expected to submit a competitive, qualifying offer to RFA Emil Andrae. Jake McCabe, Chris Tanev, and Oliver Ekman-Larsson are all expected to be retained, while Ben Danford, William Villeneuve and a host of Calder-Cup winning Toronto Marlies will fight for the rest of the roster spots.

Toronto now holds $22.8 million in cap space via PuckPedia. Chayka is now also armed with the vision to fill out the prospect pool in his own visage. McKenna and Alexander Bilecki are two excellent starts, and count on the Maple Leafs’ brain trust to find some clever adds, where they can replenish a once-barren cohort.

Consider this some more tidy work from Chayka and Toronto’s braintrust.