The Toronto Maple Leafs have acquired Tyson Barrie, Alexander Kerfoot and a 2020 sixth-round pick from the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for Nazem Kadri, Calle Rosen and a 2020 third-round selection. The Avalanche will also be retaining 50% of Barrie’s contract, which results in the Maple Leafs only being responsible for a $2.75MM cap hit for the offensive defenseman.
For some time now the Maple Leafs have been looking for an upgrade on the right side of their blue line, and will get it in Barrie who is coming off another incredible offensive season. The 27-year old had 14 goals and 59 points for the Avalanche and has been one of the league’s top puck-movers since entering the league back in 2011-12. Through 484 career games, Barrie has 307 points and could form a solid one-two punch with Morgan Rielly who is also coming off a career-best 72-point season. The team now projects to have a brand new right side with Barrie joining Cody Ceci who was acquired from the Ottawa Senators earlier today.
The Leafs have actually cleared even more cap space with this deal for the time being, as Kadri had three years left on his contract and carried a $4.5MM hit. That may change quickly however as Kerfoot is a restricted free agent coming off consecutive 40+ point seasons after signing out of Harvard University. The 24-year old decided not to join the New Jersey Devils who originally drafted him and instead went to Colorado where he has enjoyed a healthy opportunity playing both center and wing. Kerfoot has recorded 31 of his 85 career points on the powerplay, but may not get quite the same chance to touch the puck in Toronto with the man advantage given their glut of talented forwards.
For Colorado, this deal is all about securing a legitimate second-line center to play behind Nathan MacKinnon. Though Kadri was limited to just 16 goals and 44 points last season with the Maple Leafs that was more about opportunity and usage than talent. The seventh-overall pick from 2009 had consecutive 32-goal seasons prior to Toronto’s signing of John Tavares which bumped him down in the lineup, and he should get close to that again if given the chance in Colorado. The fact that he is cost-controlled for three more seasons at a more than reasonable $4.5MM makes him an extremely valuable piece for the Avalanche who have added a fair amount of scoring prowess in the last few days.
The biggest reason Barrie was even available is the way the Avalanche have built out their blue line, with names like Cale Makar, Bowen Byram and Conor Timmins all looking like they will be real contributors next season. The Maple Leafs meanwhile will hope that they can maintain some level of depth down the middle with the signings they made today, adding Jason Spezza and Nick Shore to the mix. William Nylander and Kerfoot also have experience at center, while Auston Matthews and John Tavares will obviously dominate the playing time and matchups.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
What a joke of a GM Leafs have. No 3rd line centre that can be a top 2 and no toughness whatsoever. Please be fired soon!!!
Considering the cap hit implications, this looks like a good deal for both teams. A win/win.
Matthews, Tavares, Spezza, and Kerfoot/Gauthier is solid down the middle, better than most team have. It’s day one of free agency, there will still be more moves I’m sure. It’s a solid deal.
Not really. He’s a UFA next year and will want 6 million over 6 years. Minimum. Can you answer me this. Who is going to throw a body check next year? We already had the wimpiest team in the league last year and were even worse now. Look at the final teams standing these playoffs for proof that great still wins championships.
Spezza is finished. And Goat is a nothing centre. And again, who’s going to throw a body check on this team?? Our D still stinks. Ceci’s numbers are brutal. We are a team of Smurfs. What a joke. I’m almost to the point of burning my jersey. Better yet, I’ll donate it to Goodwill.
Is Rosen really that good? Seems like Colorado got fleeced, even if it is only one year of Barrie.
There we go. Finally the leafs do something helpful! Good luck Kadri and Rosen. Now that I moved from Chicago to Castle Rock (as well possess Avalanche season tickets) I am very happy with this deal.
Burn it then. Tired of dumb fans crying over the roster. “We need RHD!!” Toronto then gets one of the better RHD in the league and it’s “We need D that hit people!” Would you prefer having Polak? Would that satisfy you? How about you let the off season develop a bit before throwing a tantrum
that’s literally why he got Alexander Kerfoot.
Well my opinion Colorado won this trade Kadri is a decent player and under for 3 years with a good contract , Barrie is Ufa next year and will be gone lol
I think your alone on that thought…
Kiss my ass if you don’t like my comments. This team as it stands won’t make it out of the 1st round. You’re an idiot if you think this team is a championship team.
Easy, guys! It’s not time to set the G.T.A. on fire, yet. But, it’s admittedly getting close…real close. Just think, though, if there wasn’t enough venom spewed at Gardiner, wait ’till you see, up close & personal, what a real defensive train wreck looks like. Jim H., Craig, Joe & Jim R. may have to beg out of doing the games this year… Dear Freddie Andersen: if you thought 40-50 SOG a night was only an “occasional” thing, get ready for 50+ on a regular basis. You might need an exoskeleton, too. Kyle’s hair color will not be the same at the end of the year as it is now…neither will Babs’ or Shanny’s…
Still a lot of work to be done. I agree the leafs are soft but they still can acquire or sign some tough guys. I thought Andrew Shaw could be a guy to plug in but in my opinion he’s a douchebag and would cause more problems within the club.
Bottom line when the leafs needed Kadri most was during the first round both years against Boston. Instead he never matured and screwed his own team both times getting suspended. He was part of the failure problems since 2013 and has in fact worn out his welcome. He needed to go.
Sounds like Barrie is an UFA after the season so this just helps guys like Sandin, Liljegren, Borgman more time to get better and develop in the AHL amongst others.
I still like Kadri. Hope he does well out here in Colorado. And glad I’ll be able to see him play.
Much more work to be done. But I do like the trade. Even if Barrie has a good season and the leafs aren’t looking good they can move him for more younger pieces. Remember the window is open for about 5 years for this group.
Next. Find a capable backup goalie for Andersen. Witt Chicago signing Lehner surprisingly both Ward as an experienced veteran or maybe Colin Delia should/could be available.
I guess this means nylander is staying put for at least the time being? If so the next guys who should be moved are Sparks and Johnsson (who I think is/was a good sign-trade bait offer.
I trash Boy Genius a lot (for good reason) but this is a great deal for the Leafs.
Kadri for Barrie is pretty fair, but getting Kerfoot back is a nice real move.
Still a good move for the Avs, Kadri makes them better and they have Makar and Johnson to play top 4 RHD.
This might be good long term for the Avs, but this is not a good deal. Barrie is more valuable than this, especially when you add Kerfoot to the deal. Rosen is simply a throw-in. Horrible deal Sakic.
To me this reeks of Sakic panicking after his plan to get Panarin didn’t work out.
Kadri the cheap shot artist
Great deal for the leafs.
I would have not traded Kadri though. I would have traded Matthews intead for a haul and rebuilt the entire organization with one deal. Matthews is a very soft player with great hands and rarely shows up in the playoffs.
Thi Leafs team is not a team built for the playoffs. They need more truculence and skill combined.
Kerfoot can play center
Colorado should have gone after Pavelski! Then they could have made a much better trade than this gift to Toronto.
going backwards in the cap department…
I think they sold short but also dealt from depth across the blue line, albeit young talent though.
Jimmer… are you Brian Burke?
and rebuild the org? the team took Boston to 7 games AGAIN. Yes they lost but you make it seem like they are a cellar dweller.
please burn your Jersey. how is this a bad deal? They gained cap room potentially AND gained a RHD. You talk about grit. How many body checks did Kadri throw from the press box in the playoffs? I’ll wait while you look it up.
Mtog…
Your an idiot if you burn it . We are better of without Kadri/ playoff suspensions cost us two years in a row no third chance. We have solid rd now. Added one id the best d in the league another good Center . Mitch will soon sign and all will be golden!
Jimmer,
Lay off the drugs bud no way they’d entertain that one. Takes more then one guy to win last I checked. In the playoffs what you get from 3/4th lines is what makes or breaks ya!
Brad,
Smaller posts no one wants to read a novel! Good luck with Kadri, over under for suspensions in the next 2 years 3?
Welcome to Colorado!
They gained cap room for one year birdbrain. He’s a UFA next year and will want 6 + mill over multiple years. Muzzin and Ceci are also UFAS and will want big $ as well. You don’t know shit about hockey, clearly. Did you watch the playoffs this year? Last year? The year after that? It comes down to skill AND grit to win it. Go back to you bedroom for a time-out.
Kadri didn’t cost us the series. No one player is that good unless he’s the goalie. You’re trying to say our #3 centre is SO good we lost because of him? Well then why did we get rid of him? Barrie is a good pick up but he’s also a UFA next year along with Muzzin. Won’t have the $ to sign both. We aren’t winning the Cup next year so why go all in for him then? This team has officially become the Smurfs on ice. Pathetic. And Spezza is washed up and not good defensively so he can’t be a “checker”. Dubas is such a moron.
Mtog, i think based on the comments your the one who’s lost my friend. btw the year after last year is this year. Just saying. If you want to troll, better get it right.
Well if you’re nitpicking it’s “I” not “i” and “you’re” not “your”. Dumbass.
oh and cap space this year is the point. They have players developing on the back end and only 1 dman signed after this upcoming season. so plenty of time to work out who stays and who goes. my guess though is you want them to sign an entire team for 4 years or more so you dont have to go through this stress each offseason.
This is what the former leaf management team would have done
I never said Kadri cost us the series singlehandedly. But the fact is he has been absent for each multiple games each series.
And again, yes they are UFA and you dont necessarily need both if the money is tight. There are players developing. Maybe check out a depth chart.
I’ll guarantee you I know more about the Leafs depth than you. Guarantee it….
And if you think Sandin or Liljegren are going to step in next year and win us a Cup….. lol! Also who’s to say either Muzzin, Barrie, or Ceci WANT to sign back? There are other teams in the league that may offer more money. Although I hope Ceci does go away.
@Mtog,
You are clearly the smartest person here and so much more informed and more intelligent than all the rest of us. In fact, you are also clearly smarter than anyone in hockey, after all you have identified that Toronto should just rebuild. I mean, nobody else agrees with you, so clearly you are smarter than everyone! Furthermore, you identified that a random stranger forgot to capitalize “I” and also they used the wrong homonym. Nobody else had the intelligence to call out the random internet stranger on their mistake. Since you are so smart, I bet you even called Vegas winning the West two years ago, therefore please tell us who will win the Cup so we can know too.
Well if you’re so bright, you could’ve read the comment above mine, where I pointed out his/her mistakes and understood why I did so. But, you just want to make facetious comments so go for it.
And yeah, I am pretty smart when it comes to hockey. Thanks!!!!
Again did anyone say one player would win us the cup? From what I hear, no one player is that good unless he’s the goalie.
@Mtog
You are welcome. Thank you for enlightening me, not about the comment above your’s earlier (I obviously read that before I commented), but instead about how serious all of this is. I thought I was being sarcastic (“marked by or given to using irony in order to mock or convey contempt”), but according to you I was being facetious (“treating serious issues with deliberately inappropriate humor”).
You should try googling the full definition, buttercup.
With his temper I’m sure Kadri threw a few up there.
I love you guys being so fired up with all the fireballs yah! are sending to each other. Any true Leaf fan , have any info on Mikheyev as on capfriendly he is listed as 3rd Line Left Winger. Anyone one see Bracco making a splash as get a lot of Marlie games on NHL Network here in the river bottom of Tennessee and like the way he played. Any help guys,
Mtog – I’ve watched worse deals than this in 36+ years a leafs fan. I’ll give you my address, will gladly add your leafs jerseys to my collection!
It’s okay bro – already offered to give my address and send his jerseys my way! I’ll gladly take em and wear em with PRIDE!
And for the record, after seeing what Dubas has done, its day one of signing season and this flurry of moves is just the tip of the iceberg! Mariners gets signed in a week, WATCH IT HAPPEN, and several (this means more than 3 mtog) will be moved to get more!
I like what I’m seeing so far with Leafs and frankly, if we traded Nylander for another solid LHD, I’d be happy!
Did We Watch the Playoffs This Year, Last Year, The Year After That?!? Seriously bro, reading your comments is like watching that Korean guy on American Idol…SHE BANGS SHE BANGS…my brain itches, I need a drink.
Pretty smart or PURTY SMART?
Why google anything when we have you, the obvious human dictionary, thesaurus and Britannica all in one comment thread? You could win at JEPURTY!
Yes autocorrect did Mariners when I meant Marner…whew, glad I saved myself before mtog gave me a virtual tongue lashing!
Well sorry. Just getting all my thoughts out in one post rather than 6 or 7 smaller ones. Plus a novel is about 150-250 pages. I don’t think a few small but to point paragraphs compare to a novel.
And I am a long time Leafs fan having just moved to south of Denver. Not an Avs fan at all but I did buy season tickets (which by the way three excellent located seats actually cost less than ONE ticket in Chicago and Toronto!!). Get to see a pretty good up and coming team here for peanuts. I think I’m in good shape.
I actually disagree about Matthews. He was absent vs Boston in 2018 but was the guy the leafs needed him to be this time around. It’s not his fault that genius Babcock played him only 15 minutes in games six and seven!
I don’t think he’s soft either. But he does need to continue to bulk up and not miss 15-20 games due to injury. Although some time off really doesn’t hurt especially if you plan on making a serious playoff run.
Nylander and Marner are much softer and weaker along the boards/puck battles than Matthews. If one has to go nylander would be the obvious choice. But let’s say things continue not working out for this core (along with Tavares’ long term contract and Andersen is still the only serviceable goalie (on the depth charts) come 2021-22. Well then I would be 100% ok with the possibility of exploring a trade involving Matthews. I definitely regard Matthews as the Leafs Anze Kopitar and will continue to do so until I’m totally proven wrong.
I’m praying they trade Nylander. I’d like to see them pick up Ben Chiarot as a LD. Don’t see him signed anywhere yet. Good 3rd pairing D from Hamilton.
And if all it takes is a grammatical error to cause you to drink…..lol.
From an outside opinion not being a fan of either team I think this trade was great for Toronto!
Your getting a top 4 RH D man and Kerfoot who can play for a locker room headache and guy who has no hockey IQ or common sense in big games in Kadri. Yes he will be a solid 2 in Colorado but Toronto didn’t need him. Good trade for Colorado, great trade for win now Maple Leafs.
He has to learn how to smell Marner first, Mariners is a baseball team in Seattle.
Typical leaf fan
All we need on here is Leprechaun…. Not!!!!!
Brad,
Way to longer pain for people to scroll through.With pictures of your new team the avs??