Analyst Identifies Blues Star Center as a Dream Fit for Maple Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs are in a very tricky position as they head toward the March 6 NHL trade deadline. They’ve turned things around in a big way over the last month and now sit just one point out of the final wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. However, they’re also decimated by injuries to key players — William Nylander, Chris Tanev, Anthony Stolarz, and now Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Brandon Carlo — while lacking both the assets and cap space to truly buy at the deadline. So where do they go from here?

It’s not an easy decision, but when you have Auston Matthews in his prime and are firmly in the playoff hunt, you have to go for it in some capacity. While making a big slash will be extremely difficult, Dom Luszczyszyn of The Athletic believes Robert Thomas would be the perfect target to zone in on.

---

St. Louis’ star center surprisingly appeared on TSN insider Chris Johnston’s latest trade board, and several other reports have suggested he may not be untouchable. As a result, Luszczyszyn thinks Thomas could be one player worth Toronto paying a significant price to acquire.

Luszczyszyn Wrote:

“It cannot be understated how perfect Thomas would fit on this team. Thomas is a right-shot, playmaking center who handles tough matchups well and creates high-danger setups better than almost any other player in the league. Whether it’s as a Marner replacement next to Auston Matthews or a 2C who can ease some of Matthews’ defensive burden, Thomas would solve a lot of problems in Toronto. His projected Net Rating is around plus-11 and would be enough of an upgrade to push the Leafs toward becoming a top 10 team again… The Leafs could dangle future firsts and Cowan (who would only be worth trading for a player as valuable as Thomas), but that would create significantly more risk with Matthews unsigned beyond 2028, depending on how far into the future Toronto’s pick is,”

Though currently injured, the 26-year-old Thomas has tallied 33 points (11 goals, 22 assists) in 42 games played this season.

He’s in year three of the eight-year, $65 million extension signed with the Blues back in 2022.

Robert Thomas’ Connection to the Maple Leafs

The idea of Thomas setting up Matthews in a similar fashion to the rapport he shared with Mitch Marner for nine years is both tantalizing and realistic — and the connections between Thomas and the Maple Leafs don’t stop there.

First, Thomas was born in Aurora, Ontario, just outside Toronto, so he has a firsthand understanding of what it means to be a Maple Leaf. Second, he spent parts of six seasons under Craig Berube in St. Louis — which included winning the Stanley Cup in 2018-19 — who helped mold him into the star he is today.

There’s no question that acquiring Thomas would be costly, and general manager Brad Treliving may not even have the pieces to get a deal done. That said, if there’s any player worth parting with a potential haul that includes Easton Cowan, Ben Danford, and multiple draft picks, this is it.

Next: Maple Leafs, Canadiens Among Teams in Pursuit of Flames Star