Toronto Maple Leafs fall short in trade sweepstakes for two-time Stanley Cup winner

Before the NHL trade deadline on Friday afternoon at 3 p.m. EST, the Toronto Maple Leafs will probably make a pretty big move or two.

But as of Wednesday afternoon, the team still hasn’t made any trades since the October move that sent former first-round pick Timothy Liljegren to the San Jose Sharks.

Today, one of Toronto’s divisional rivals in the Atlantic Division made a rather big move, as the Tampa Bay Lightning have reportedly acquired Yanni Gourde and Oliver Bjorkstrand from the Seattle Kraken, as per TSN’s Pierre LeBrun. In exchange for the two players, the Kraken will be receiving two first-round picks, a second-round pick, as well as Mikey Eyssimont.

Seattle gets first round pick in 26, first round pick in 27, Toronto's 2nd in '25 and Eyssimont in trade with Tampa.
Bolts get Gourde and Bjokstrand plus 5th Rd pick in '26

— Pierre LeBrun (@PierreVLeBrun) March 5, 2025

Gourde, notably, won two Stanley Cups with Tampa Bay in 2020 and 2021 before being claimed by the Kraken in the NHL Expansion Draft four years ago.

While it’s quite the haul for both sides, it appears that Toronto might’ve missed the boat on making a move with the Kraken.

According to The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta, Toronto was among the teams interested in potentially bringing Gourde to Toronto.

Lots of eyes on Seattle this week. Tanev is expected to move. Gourde, who returned from injury last night, has generated a lot of interest. Clubs like Toronto, Tampa, Vegas, Ottawa, Columbus and others have poked around on one/both. Kraken also have players with term available.

— David Pagnotta (@TheFourthPeriod) March 5, 2025

With that deal no longer an option for the Leafs, they’ll have to turn to other options to bolster their team ahead of this year’s postseason, though they could still conceivably target Seattle winger Brandon Tanev if they are still interested. Tanev, the younger brother of Leafs defenceman Chris Tanev, has put up nine goals and eight assists in 60 games for Seattle this season.

Sitting in first place in the Atlantic Division with 21 games left in the regular season, Toronto is in a pretty good spot as they began a three-game road swing tonight in Las Vegas.

But until the call officially comes in that the Leafs have finished their trades for the 2024-25 regular season, you can bet that we’ll hear the franchise linked to several players over the next few days.

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