Could Other Norris Trophy Winner Be Maple Leafs’ Big Target?

The Toronto Maple Leafs are said to be big-game hunting right now, and everyone is trying to figure out who they might be targeting.

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Reshaping the blue line is something they’ve already begun doing with the additions of Darren Raddysh and Emil Andrae, and that will likely continue moving forward.

As a result, some have wondered whether new GM John Chayka could pursue this year’s Norris Trophy winner, Zach Werenski, who may not be in it for the long haul in Columbus. While Werenski would be a tremendous acquisition, insider Jeff Marek wonders about a different Norris Trophy winner: Roman Josi.

Marek said:

“Again, not reporting this, but if you put me on the spot to give you an answer, Roman Josi. Because the first thing if you’re John Chayka, you want to redo the blue line… You don’t know how deep a rebuild this is going to be for the Nashville Predators, but if you’re Roman Josi, do you want to hang around longer for this or do you want to put yourself in a better situation where you might be able to maximize your potential and get back into a playoff race? It’s not as if that agency doesn’t have a number of clients on the Toronto Maple Leafs already, so you know how that game works,”

The 36-year-old Josi has two years remaining on the eight-year, $72.472 million contract extension he signed with the Predators in 2019. He recorded 55 points (13 goals, 42 assists) in 68 games last season.

Josi may be getting up there in age, but he remains highly productive and could potentially be acquired for less than some of the other big-names who have surfaced in trade speculation.

There hasn’t been much buzz around him being available, but if the Predators, as Marek suggested, decide to tear things down and truly rebuild, Josi could quickly emerge as one of the NHL’s top trade candidates — and a player the Maple Leafs would undoubtedly covet.

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