The Toronto Maple Leafs’ blue line is an area of need heading into tomorrow’s trade deadline. They’ve already acquired Ilya Lyubushkin, who had previously played for the Maple Leafs, in a trade with the Anaheim Ducks a few days ago. Now, general manager Brad Treliving has gone out and acquired Joel Edmundson from the Washington Capitals for a couple of draft picks. Here are the full details:
Because of the Maple Leafs’ cap situation, it’s no surprise they got 50 percent retention from the Capitals. Edmundson is another depth move, but will he (along with Lyubushkin) be enough for this team come the playoffs? Let’s grade each side.
Edmundson Doesn’t Add Much to the Leafs’ Defense
It seems like the Maple Leafs always add at least one defender at the trade deadline. They’ve done it twice with Lyubushkin, with Jake McCabe last trade deadline, and Jake Muzzin many moons ago. Now, we can add Edmundson to the mix.
Related: Grading Golden Knights’ Trade for Noah Hanifin
The Capitals acquired Edmundson from the Montreal Canadiens during the offseason to add some defensive depth and help make them competitive. They hung around in the playoff race longer than most imagined they would, but they still decided to sell pieces like Edmundson and Anthony Mantha.
Edmundson largely played a third-pair role for the Capitals, which should be the expectation once he joins the Maple Leafs. His underlying results, though better than they were with the Canadiens, were not great in his time with the Capitals. His play was worth a total goals above replacement (GAR) of minus-1.8, while his actual GAR was minus-0.9
The Capitals are not a great defensive team, but that doesn’t take away from Edmundson being one of their weaker shot suppressors at five-on-five, allowing 2.79 expected goals per 60 minutes. Mind you, this was with him being on the lower end of the totem pole when it came to facing stiffer competition.
The Maple Leafs didn’t give up many assets, just third and fifth-round picks. But was it really the best use of draft capital, considering they don’t have much in the way of draft capital? They’re now without their second and thirds for the 2024 draft and do not have a pick until the fifth round in the 2025 draft.
That means Treliving needed to use his assets wisely, but I don’t think Edmundson was the right way to go. To be honest, I imagine Edmundson being 6-foot-5, 221 pounds, was a significant factor in why Treliving targeted him. Because when looking at his value, well, I don’t think he’ll help the team much:
It’s clear Treliving had a type he was seeking for defensemen in acquiring Lyubushkin and Edmundson. Big and physical, but that doesn’t mean the moves were good. He could’ve done better with the limited assets he had to improve their defense.
Leafs Grade: C-
Capitals With More Smooth Asset Management
From the Capitals’ perspective, they have to be pretty happy with the return they got for one year of Edmundson. They acquired him for third and seventh-round picks in the 2024 draft and flipped him for a slight upgrade on what they gave up.
The picks don’t have any conditions on them, but a third and fifth in the upcoming draft is probably more than Edmundson is worth. The only thing worth noting is that the Capitals have now used two of their three retention slots after retaining on Edmundson and Mantha’s contracts. It’s only for the rest of the season, so it’s not a long-term concern. But if they plan on selling a bit more and need to retain, they’ll have to be careful about who they choose to retain on.
Otherwise, there’s not much to complain about with the Capitals’ return. Two mid-round picks are worth more than what Edmundson provides, and they shouldn’t have gotten more even though they retained. This was another piece of good work by GM Brian MacLellan.
Capitals Grade: B+
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Advanced stats from Natural Stat Trick, Evolving Hockey