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Leafs Acquire Jake Muzzin

Wow. Gotta think this is for the top pairing, right? No way they pay that price to keep Rielly-Hainsey together.
 
Muzzin has 1 year left on his deal after this one. AAV of $4mil. He's been LA's top defenceman all year, arguably outperforming Doughty this season.
 
Big move. Sacrificing the 1st hurts. Grundstrom and Durzi are nice prospects, but similar guys are available in the 2?d and 3rd rounds every year. They can be replaced, and Muzzin isn?t a rental, either. Almost certainly means Gardiner is gone as a UFA, though - but the team might be able to recoup a pick by moving his rights.
 
https://twitter.com/DarrenDreger/status/1090042608624242688

So:

Rielly-Muzzin
Gardiner-Zaitsev
Dermott-Hainsey

That'll have a huge impact.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
This also almost certainly means no Gardiner next season. It'll be tough enough to get Muzzin's cap hit to fit.
Click to expand...

But can we have Jake? for the rest of the year
 
Seems like a lot to give up. I?ve seen Durzi play and am a big fan of his. I guess it makes sense though, makes the team immediately better for a run this year.
 
The handedness might not be what we were expecting, but the team acquired a legit top-4 defenceman that fits this system pretty well without giving up Kapanen, Johnsson, Sandin, or Liljegren. I think that Dubas did pretty well here.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
This also almost certainly means no Gardiner next season. It'll be tough enough to get Muzzin's cap hit to fit.
Click to expand...

I think that's really key. The price the Leafs paid is maybe more akin to a bigger name get but Muzzin being more affordable for next year presents a real value that, say, a Pietrangelo wouldn't.

I'd have rather given up Johnsson than Grundstrom but, you know, c'est la vie.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
The handedness might not be what we were expecting, but the team acquired a legit top-4 defenceman that fits this system pretty well without giving up Kapanen, Johnsson, Sandin, or Liljegren. I think that Dubas did pretty well here.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I was wondering if he's ever played on the R side.

That's a lot to give up, so I'm guessing the D-man market is a pretty tough one right now.
 
CarltonTheBear said:
The handedness might not be what we were expecting, but the team acquired a legit top-4 defenceman that fits this system pretty well without giving up Kapanen, Johnsson, Sandin, or Liljegren. I think that Dubas did pretty well here.
Click to expand...

Yeah. The righties out there would have either cost more or be less impactful. Muzzin is probably the best cost vs impact pickup.
 
On the face of it, this looks like a better deal than the McDonagh one (for the slightly better player to boot).
 
Frycer14 said:
He's actually got a more than decent point shot as well, which is an attribute lacking from the team D.

Maybe even a PP option.
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There's a reason the Leafs deliberately don't bother with the point shot.
 
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