Maple Leafs Land Alexander Nikishin in Suggested Trade With Hurricanes – The Hockey Writers –

The Toronto Maple Leafs made a lot of changes this offseason, from their management down to their player personnel, and seem confident in their ability to get back into the playoff picture. The Carolina Hurricanes are coming off of a Stanley Cup victory and seem poised to try and make another deep run, but they may have to try and do so without one of their promising young defenders.

Alexander Nikishin, who has widely been considered one of the league’s top prospects, requested a trade this offseason, and still would prefer to be moved.

Nikishin, who is 24 years old, played 81 games in his rookie campaign last season, where he scored 11 goals and added 22 assists for 33 points. He has proven to be a strong, physical player who has a strong offensive ceiling, and seems to only be getting started as a future top-pairing defender.

The Maple Leafs made some changes to their blue line, adding Darren Raddysh in a massive sign-and-trade with the Tampa Bay Lightning, but their depth remains a giant question mark, especially with injuries.

Adding a young, promising defender like Nikishin, would make the Maple Leafs younger and give them someone with playoff experience, who is coming off a Stanley Cup victory in his first NHL campaign.

In this article, we take a quick look at a hypothetical deal sending Nikishin to the Maple Leafs. Keep in mind, while Nikishin’s trade request is now being reported, there are no reports that the Hurricanes and Maple Leafs have had any conversations.

Hurricanes Strengthen Prospect Pool, Maple Leafs Take Risk

There is risk associated with adding a young player like Nikishin who only has one year under his belt, but it is a risk worth taking. If he pans out and turns into a true number one defender who can benefit with competition alongside Raddysh, he could be someone that helps end the Maple Leafs’ championshup drought.

The other issue with Nikishin is that he needs a new deal, and is likely looking for around $9.5 million annually on a long-term deal. With the Maple Leafs’ current cap situation, they will have to move money out, and find a way to fit him into their roster.

Trading Morgan Rielly, who has a $7.5 million cap hit, clears up a lot of space for the Maple Leafs to make this move. They would also have to move Dakota Joshua, who has a $3.25 million cap hit. With that, they could give Nikishin a seven-year deal worth around $10 million, and have enough cap space to run a roster with 12 forwards, six defensemen, and two goaltenders.

It keeps things tight for the Maple Leafs, but they would immediately be upgrading their blue line, and would have their top-two defenders locked up long-term, not having to worry about that for a while, and with some decent veteran depth, it becomes one of their strengths.

Realistically, a deal could look like this:

• Maple Leafs Receive: D Alexander Nikishin (7-year extension, sign-and-trade)
• Hurricanes Receive: F Tinus Luc Koblar, Maple Leafs’ 2029 first-round pick, Maple Leafs’ 2027 second-round pick, and Blue Jackets’ 2027 second-round pick.

Teams now know that Nikishin is available, and considering his potential, it will be a high asking price. The Maple Leafs giving up a top prospect and three picks might seem steep, but it fills a need for them, and giving up those asstes, knowing they are trying to go all-in, makes a lot of sense for them right now.

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