Why the Maple Leafs traded Brandon Carlo to the St. Louis Blues

Дата публикации: 27-06-2026 16:45:11

The 29-year-old didn’t have the impact the Leafs desired when they acquired him from the Boston Bruins in March 2025

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John Chayka’s restructuring of the Maple Leafs blue line continues.

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The Leafs on Saturday traded defenceman Brandon Carlo to the St. Louis Blues for two third-round picks in the 2026 NHL draft — Nos. 73 and 76 overall.

“It was a tough decision,” Chayka said. “Ultimately, we felt like the value was there for us in terms of future value and the opportunity today to restock the cupboards a bit.

“For Brandon, it was a fresh start, and I think that’s important to him. It’s a good fit for us to get some fresh blood in the back end. I have talked about kind of changing a little bit of the back end, the way we defend, where we break out pucks, so it’s an opportunity for us, it’s flexibility, and it’s also a couple young players that we had some passion for.”

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The Leafs chose Saskatoon Blades winger Zach Olsen with the 73rd pick and Swedish defenceman Mans Gudmunsson with the 76th pick.

The trade came after Chayka, named Leafs general manager in the first week of May, acquired defenceman Darren Raddysh from the Tampa Bay Lightning in a sign-and-trade, and got Emil Andrae from the Philadelphia Flyers in a swap that sent goalie Joseph Woll and defenceman Simon Benoit.

And it came a day after Chayka sent goalie Samuel Ersson, acquired in the Woll trade, to the Ottawa Senators for a fifth-round pick in 2027.

“Asset management,” Chayka said. “To harvest another asset off of that (Philly) transaction made a lot of sense for us. We talked to his camp about what it looked like, what the fit would be, what the contract could be, and I think ultimately just felt like it was better to acquire the asset.”

Boston Bruins centre Fraser Minten celebrates his game-winning goal in a shootout against the Washington Capitals, Saturday, March 14, 2026, in Washington. Photo by Nick Wass /THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

We’ll see if Chayka’s moves regarding the blue line continue and whether it would include veteran Morgan Rielly, after the sides got trade talks going a few weeks ago.

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The 29-year-old Carlo, it’s awfully fair to say, didn’t have the impact the Leafs desired when they acquired him from the Boston Bruins in March 2025.

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Not only did Brad Treliving, the Leafs GM at the time, give up prospect Fraser Minten, he sent a Leafs first-round pick to the Bruins. That pick will be used by the Bruins in either 2027 or 2028.

Minten already has become a valued contributor for the Bruins.

Carlo, who has one year remaining on his contract with an average annual value of $4.1 million US, didn’t supply anything approaching physical edge for the Leafs despite his 6-foot-5, 227-pound size.

He played in a total of 75 games for the Leafs in two seasons and managed to not score a goal, recording 10 assists and 50 penalty minutes.

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Carlo was one of the Leafs who was on the ice and did nothing when Radko Gudas of the Anaheim Ducks hit captain Auston Matthews with a knee-on-knee hit in March, ending Matthews’ season.

Carlo’s name had been in trade speculation going back to last summer. With his contract off the books, the Leafs are approximately $22.2 million under the salary cap.

tkoshan@postmedia.com

X: @koshtorontosun

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