The Toronto Maple Leafs continue to roll and trade ahead of the NHL trade deadline.
The club bought out Luke Schenn – nearly 15 years after selecting him fifth overall in the 2008 draft – following two more deals on Tuesday that saw Toronto send fellow defenseman Rasmus Sandin to the Washington Capitals and the forward Pierre Engvall to the New York Islanders. .
The trade for Schenn, a pending unrestricted free agent who should add depth to an organization determined to end its ugly playoff streak, included the Leafs sending the Vancouver Canucks a third-round pick in June.
The 33-year-old has three goals and 21 points in 2022-23. In 918 career regular season games with Toronto, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, Arizona, Anaheim, Tampa and Vancouver, Schenn has 41 goals and 190 points.
A Stanley Cup champion with Tampa in 2020 and 2021, the Saskatoon native has added three goals and three assists in 31 postseason games.
The Leafs traded Schenn to Philadelphia for James van Riemsdyk in 2012 after four seasons in Toronto.
The flurry of afternoon activity with the trade deadline set for Friday began with Toronto shipping Sandin to Washington for defenseman Erik Gustafsson and a 2023 first round.
The Leafs then traded Engvall to New York for a third-round selection in 2024.
Taken with the 29th pick in 2018, Sandin has four goals and 20 points in 52 games this season. The 22-year-old has 10 goals and 48 points in 140 regular season appearances with the Leafs. He scored once in five playoff games.
Gustafsson has seven goals and 38 points in 61 games in 2022-23. In 370 career games with Chicago, Calgary, Philadelphia, Montreal and Washington, the 30-year-old has scored 39 goals and 187 points. He added eight points (one goal, seven assists) in 31 playoff games.
The Leafs’ pick in Tuesday’s deal with Washington was originally acquired from Boston in last week’s trade where the Bruins got defenseman Dmitry Orlov and forward Garnet Hathaway from the Capitals.
Engvall has 12 goals and 21 points in 58 games this season. A seventh-round pick in 2014, the 26-year-old has 42 goals and 83 points in 226 games with Toronto. He added four assists in 17 playoff appearances.
Schenn and Gustafsson join a roster that has been significantly reworked by general manager Kyle Dubas in recent weeks as the Leafs look to advance to the playoffs for the first time since 2004.
Toronto acquired centers Ryan O’Reilly and Noel Acciari from St. Louis on Feb. 17 and added defenseman Jake McCabe and forward Sam Lafferty from Chicago on Monday ahead of Tuesday’s deluge.
Dubas gave up a number of high draft picks in recent years — including deals with St. Louis and Chicago — but picked up one in the trade for Gustafsson, who is set to become an unrestricted free agent in July after earned US$800,000 in 2022-23.
Sandin is on the books for another season with a $1.4 million salary cap before potentially hitting restricted free agency in the summer of 2024.
Engvall, who earns $2.25 million this season, is expected to become UFA in July.
Schenn, meanwhile, earns $850,000 in 2022-23.
This report from The Canadian Press was first published on February 28, 2023.
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