Surprisingly, the number one topic around the Toronto Maple Leafs isn’t adding a defenceman this year at the NHL trade deadline, or at least it’s not their priority. With all the talk around adding a top nine centre to bolster the Maple Leafs offensive group with secondary scoring, the defensive side of the puck hasn’t been talked about as much and for good reason.

In past years defence was a struggle, but this year under new head coach Craig Berube the defencemen have looked much better. It also helps when you add someone like Chris Tanev, a shot blocking machine to the back end while also getting elite goaltending from both Anthony Stolarz and Joseph Woll.

Right now, the team has given up 165 goals, good for 23^rd in the league (32^nd is the best in this case) or in others in the top third of the NHL. With other stats however, the Maple Leafs find themselves in the middle of the pack, such as 1692 shots against, good for 19^th in the league, 18^th in takeaways to opponents with 284 (1^st is best for both stats) and 19^th in overall shots blocked with 1019 (32^nd is best for this stat), all stats according to moneypuck.com.

Defence wins championships, right? So, I think it’s safe to stay that even though the Leafs aren’t lacking on defence like years past, they should still be looking to improve on the back end.

Just like the centre trade targets list that’s already up, here’s a ranked list of defencemen trade targets that the Maple Leafs have been connected to.

Colton Parayko is the slam dunk number one option on this list for the Toronto Maple Leafs. By multiple reports, the St. Louis Blues are open to business on everybody and even though Brayden Schenn might help out more up front, it’s not too often a guy like Parayko becomes available. At six-foot-six the 31-year-old is a massive body to add on the back end. As seen in his play at the 4 Nations Face-Off, he was defensively sound against some of the best offensive players in the world.

Not only is he great defensively, but he’s also able to step in and help out offensively, in 58 games so far this season Parayko has record 13 goals (a career high), 32 points, and has been the anchor keeping the struggling Blues team afloat in the Western Conference.

He would fit right into Berube’s system, already playing for him when Berube was the coach of the Blues leading to a Stanley Cup in 2019 and would make the Maple Leafs defensive lines a problem for every team going forward. With a player of his calibre, you know the price tag is going to be high, but the fact he’s locked up until 2030 with a $6.5M AAV cap hit makes him worth everything and the Maple Leafs should try anything they can do in order have him playing in the blue and white.

Coming in at number two on this list we have the two-time ex Maple Leafs defenceman Luke Schenn, yes that’s right if the Maples Leafs were to trade for him it would be his third time suiting up for battle with Toronto and I think they should do it.

While Schenn might be on the older side at age 35, there is still a lot of good hockey left in him and unlike other guys his age, he hasn’t fallen off. At six-foot-two he would be a very solid add to the back end of the Maple Leafs, helping stabilize the top six and become one of the best defensive groups in the NHL. Scoring won’t be Schenn’s thing with only one goal, five points in 58 games this season, but it’s the defensive and physical side where Schenn brings so much value.

Schenn currently ranks fifth in the league for hits with 214, while the highest defenceman on the Leafs in terms of hits currently sits in 32^nd with Simon Benoit recording 144. Schenn will bring a sense of toughness that the team doesn’t currently have in their defensive group.

The price tag for Schenn won’t be cheap, obviously nowhere near Parayko though and with Schenn’s $2.75M AAV it makes it a lot easier for the Maple Leafs to try and facilitate a trade.

Look, the Chicago Blackhawks are open for business and obviously want to move Seth Jones over Connor Murphy, I just don’t see any possible way the Maple Leafs would want to trade for Jones, who carries a $9.5M AAV cap hit until 2030. Even if the Leafs were able to get him at cheaper price, I still think his game has dipped so far that it’s just not worth it.

On the other hand, with Connor Murphy available, that’s who I think the Maple Leafs are targeting. Just like the other two guys above him on this list, he’s tall. Murphy, who stands six-foot-four and is 31-years-old would be a great addition to the Maple Leafs defence.

Being in Chicago throughout the entire rebuild his numbers aren’t the prettiest, but he does have a better offensive game then Schenn. So far this season Murphy has one goal, 16 points in 46 games. So, you may ask how can you say this guy is good if the numbers aren’t there to support it? Well, that’s fair, but when we watch Murphy play you can tell that he is a solid defensive presence that just needs a chance to play on a contending team for the first time in his career. I mean he wasn’t drafted 20^th overall back in 2011 for nothing. The price is the best part and why he’s number three on this list. Murphy shouldn’t be worth any more than a second-round pick and maybe an additional pick in the later rounds, which is something I think the Maple Leafs would be interested in doing.

David Savard, the one asset the Montreal Canadiens should’ve traded away at last year’s trade deadline because since then he hasn’t been the best. Still decent, he’s nowhere near where once was. Along with Murphy, Savard is higher on the list because of the price you can get him at right now. The offensive numbers won’t jump off the page, he’s recorded one goal and 12 points in 53 games this season, but the six-foot-one 34-year-old still can play defence and be very solid. He’s a smart player in his own end who will not make many mistakes and will stay out of the penalty box as well.

Adding Savard to the backend would a good addition to the Maple Leafs, but with that unlike the other three above, I think Savard is a number four defenceman at best on championship team.

I think if the Leafs were able to get Savard along with Jake Evans, another trade deadline name this year, it would be a much sweeter deal than just getting Savard alone.

For some reason I’ve been seeing a lot of Jamie Oleksiak rumours to the Maple Leafs, and I just don’t understand it. Yes, he would be any upgrade to the back end for sure, but only as the sixth defencemen. The one huge positive for him is that he’s six-foot-seven, which helps, but outside of that he doesn’t check the boxes for me. In 60 games this season he has four goals, 13 points which is right on par with some of the other guys for sure, but it’s the lack of defensive play that scares me with him. He ranks 35th (not great) in defensive zone giveaways according to moneypuck.com with 47 thus far. He’s not physical either on the puck or with the body, which is something the Maple Leafs need, and he’s recorded 51 hits this season, less than one a game.

If it’s Oleksiak and Gourde who the Maple Leafs end up trading for I think it will come back to bite them in the playoffs especially when there are a lot of better guys available, both defensively and offensively.

Get ready, hockey fans! The Daily Faceoff Deadline is happening on March 7th from 11 AM to 4 PM Eastern, and you won’t want to miss it. We’ll be LIVE, breaking down every trade and big move as it happens, with instant reactions and expert analysis from the Daily Faceoff crew. Plus, we’ve got special guests lined up throughout the show, offering exclusive insights from some of the biggest names in the game. From blockbuster trades to surprise moves, we’re covering it all. Tune in to the Daily Faceoff YouTube channel and follow Daily Faceoff socials on March 7th to catch all the action!