Maple Leafs Rumors

Impact right-shot defensemen are typically in short supply and high demand and with the trade deadline now less than six weeks away, it appears this year will be no exception.  Accordingly, those with one to move will have no shortage of suitors and that’s the case for the Flames with defenseman Chris Tanev as Postmedia’s Bruce Garrioch reports that as many as ten teams have already reached out to Calgary GM Craig Conroy to inquire about the blueliner.

The 34-year-old has never been a significant point producer and has just nine points in 46 games so far this season but Tanev has a well-earned reputation as one of the top shutdown defensemen in the league.  He leads the Flames in shorthanded ice time while hanging around the 20-minute-per-game mark as he often does.  On top of that, Tanev is among the league leaders in blocked shots, collecting 135 already, good for fifth-most in the NHL.  Considering that teams are always looking to shore up their defensive reliability and penalty killing, it should come as no surprise that there are plenty of teams showing interest in Tanev.

Garrioch notes that the Maple Leafs, Canucks, and Kings are among those teams that have shown interest.  Toronto GM Brad Treliving is quite familiar with Tanev from his days in charge in Calgary and Garrioch suggests that the blueliner is currently their top target.  As for Vancouver, Tanev would be quite familiar with them having spent the first ten years of his career with them before joining Calgary as a free agent back in 2020.  Los Angeles, meanwhile, has an established top four but they have two youngsters (Brandt Clarke and Jordan Spence) and journeyman Andreas Englund rounding out the rest of the group; Tanev would certainly give them some more stability.

Ottawa has also been speculated as a team that could be interested with GM Steve Staios looking for a quality veteran or two.  However, with the Sens well out of playoff contention, it’s hard to see them coughing up the asking price and Tanev being open to going there over a postseason contender.  Worth noting is that Tanev has a 10-team no-trade clause, giving him some control in where he might go.  If an acquiring team wants to work out an extension at the same time, that also gives the veteran a bit more leverage to make sure he lands with a new organization of his choice.

With players of Tanev’s caliber hard to come by, it appears that Conroy has set a high asking price for his services.  Garrioch relays that the ask is believed to be at least a first-round pick plus a prospect; if teams get into a bidding war, they could get more than that as well if they’re willing to retain the maximum 50%.  Tanev has a $4.5MM AAV which is difficult for many contending teams to afford but if that is cut in half and perhaps Calgary takes a smaller contract back, most potential suitors should be able to make that work.

With more than a month until the trade deadline, there’s a good chance that Tanev won’t be leaving Calgary in the immediate future; the longer they wait, the easier it is for teams with regular cap space to afford the contract.  But if his market is strong as Garrioch suggests, the Flames will be poised to land a quality future return for Tanev’s services by the time March 8th comes around.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.