2 defensemen Maple Leafs should avoid trading for at the deadline.
The Toronto Maple Leafs intend to buy at the 2024 Trade Deadline. They haven’t exactly lived up to expectations and are struggling to keep their playoff dreams alive. Following a significant win over the St. Louis Blues, they are fourth in the Atlantic Division with 62 points and occupy the first Eastern Conference wild-card slot. As a team with great ambitions for the playoffs, it’s no wonder that they’ve recently been linked to multiple players from rebuilding teams. They will undoubtedly want to improve their roster before the March 8 deadline, but there are a few players they should avoid adding.
Noah Hanifin and Matt Dumba are pending unrestricted free agents (UFAs) who play for playoff-contending teams. Hanifin plays for the Calgary Flames, who recently opted to deal top forward Elias Lindholm to the Vancouver Canucks, demonstrating their willingness to sell assets for a fair price. Dumba plays for the Arizona Coyotes, who have had unexpected success this season but have slipped back out of the playoff picture. With a 23-24-4 record, they are eight points out of a wild-card slot and appear to be slipping out of the playoffs yet again.
While the Maple Leafs will undoubtedly be trying to improve their blue line before the deadline, there is no reason for them to pursue either Dumba or Hanifin, albeit for different reasons. Dumba has a good contract but isn’t the finest defensive player, and the Flames’ asking price for Hanifin is believed to be exceedingly high, especially if the Lindholm deal is any indication of what they’re looking for.
Matt Dumba
Dumba, a 29-year-old right-shot defender from Regina, Saskatchewan, is 6-feet and weighs 181 pounds. He was selected seventh overall in the first round of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft by the Minnesota Wild. Dumba played junior hockey in the Western Hockey League (WHL) for the Red Deer Rebels and Portland Winterhawks. Dumba has 57 points in 69 games during his draft year, scoring 20 goals and 37 assists. He returned the following season, scoring 16 goals and adding 26 assists for 42 points through 62 games, even earning three games in the American Hockey League (AHL), where he had no points, although it was his first experience playing professional hockey. He was traded to the Winterhawks in 2013-14 and spent the rest of the season with them.
Dumba scored 59 goals and 92 assists for 151 points in 225 games across parts of five seasons in the WHL, averaging 0.67 points per game. He soon established himself as a solid offensive-minded defenseman, but he struggled to find a strong defensive game in the NHL. As of the writing of this article, Dumba has 82 goals and 160 assists for 242 points in 645 NHL games, equating to a 0.38 points per game average.
The above player card shows that Dumba does not have a significant impact on the defensive side of the game. Between 2020 and 2023, he was unable to develop a consistent defensive game and became a liability for the Wild before being released as a UFA. He might be better suited to a third-pairing role with less ice time, but he has shown throughout his career that he isn’t the best option. If he was available for less than $1 million and the Maple Leafs expressed interest, the scenario would be different. However, he now carries a $3.9 million cap charge from the Coyotes and should be avoided at all costs.
Dumba doesn’t provide more than the Maple Leafs’ current defensive lineup. They will surely be looking to upgrade defensively — especially with the risk of injuries in the postseason — but Dumba is not someone they should be willing to spend assets on to bring in, even if the Coyotes were willing to retain 50% of his contract for the remainder of the season.
Noah Hanifin
Hanifin is a much stronger defender, but there’s another reason he should be avoided. He is a 27-year-old left-handed defender from Boston, Massachusetts, who stands 6 feet 3 inches and weighs 216 pounds. The Carolina Hurricanes selected him fifth overall in the first round of the 2015 NHL Entry Draft following a good performance in the NCAA with Boston College, where he scored five goals and added 18 assists for 23 points in 37 games. In his first season with the Hurricanes, Hanifin scored four goals and added 18 assists for 22 points in 79 games, making an immediate impact on both ends of the rink.
Hanifin has a $4.95 million cap charge that expires at the end of the season, which is a fairly reasonable contract for many teams. If the Lindholm deal is any indication of what the Flames want in exchange for their next free agents, the Maple Leafs should avoid it and seek elsewhere. There is no assurance Hanifin will sign an extension with the Maple Leafs, thus giving up three or more assets (which they acquired from the Canucks for Lindholm) for a potential rental asset makes little sense.
Hopefully, the Maple Leafs will make the correct decisions and bring in some reasonable upgrades. There will be plenty of players available before the deadline, but the Maple Leafs must act quickly in the trade market if they hope to outbid other teams for particular players. If they play their cards well and make the appropriate moves, they might contend for their first Stanley Cup since 1967.
