The Toronto Maple Leafs are nearing the point where their roster for opening night of the 2026-27 season starts to take shape, and the blueline is becoming the area to watch. What once looked like a straightforward depth situation is now tilting toward a numbers problem.
The expected addition of Nick Blankenburg is what could push it over the edge. Blankenburg joined Toronto on a Professional Try-Out this summer, and there’s growing talk that the 28-year-old is close to landing a one-year deal. If that happens, the Leafs will suddenly have more defensemen than they can realistically dress on most nights.
Blankenburg brings a profile that makes sense on paper. He’s a right-shot defender, stands 5-foot-9 and weighs 177 pounds, and has built a reputation as a reliable bottom-pairing option with stops in Columbus, Nashville and Colorado. He has also shown he can move around the lineup, has averaged more than 19 minutes of ice time twice in his career, and can chip in offensively when he’s put in the right spots.
Toronto would also be hoping the price stays low. Blankenburg carried an AAV of just $775,000 over the last two seasons, which would fit the kind of budget-conscious move the club would want before Max Domi inevitably gets placed on LTIR.
But the fit gets messy fast. If Blankenburg signs, the Maple Leafs would be carrying eight defensemen on the books, and that’s before even considering how little room there may be for a steady seven-man rotation on most nights. The club has already added Darren Raddysh to anchor a top pair and run a power play, while Emil Andrae is the only other newcomer on the defensive side.
That leaves Blankenburg in a battle for ice time with Andrae and Troy Stecher when the season begins. Toronto can justify the depth, especially if Chris Tanev needs some load management during the year, but it also means somebody is likely sitting more often than not.
The age factor matters too. Blankenburg and Andrae are younger than the rest of the group, so the Leafs expect both to get their chances as the season goes on.
The issue is timing. Early on, those opportunities may be hard to find, and a regular spot in the lineup might not come right away.
Head coach Jim Hiller could try to manage the situation with a rotation and spread the minutes around, giving the back end a different look from night to night. Even so, Toronto still has to decide how it wants to handle the logjam.
That could mean waivers. It could mean a trade.
It could mean simply carrying eight defensemen and living with the occasional press-box night. However it plays out, the Leafs may soon have more bodies on defense than open seats.
In Other News...
Maple Leafs Face One Costly Marchenko Question
Kirill Marchenkos future in Columbus has suddenly become a topic of real interest around the league, and Toronto is among the clubs being mentioned as a possible landing spot. The Blue Jackets forward has publicly requested a trade, even while reporting to training camp, which has only added to the intrigue for teams looking for scoring help. For the Maple Leafs, it is the sort of situation that naturally invites debate, because Marchenkos talent would fit into a market that is always searching for more offense.
The harder part for Toronto is the price. Any serious pursuit would almost certainly force the Maple Leafs to weigh young pieces such as Easton Cowan, Ben Danford, Harry Nansi, and Matthew Knies, the kind of names that make any trade conversation uncomfortable in a hurry. That is the tension now: Marchenko could give Toronto a useful boost, but only if the Leafs are willing to pay a cost that changes the calculus of what kind of deal makes sense for the present and the future. [Read more 🡒]
Maple Leafs Have A Chance To Create A Family Story Fans Will Love
The Rangers are putting Taylor Raddysh on waivers, and that gives the Maple Leafs a small but intriguing opening as roster decisions start to come into focus. Toronto has not made a waiver claim yet this offseason, but with those calls approaching, this is the kind of low-risk move teams around the league have to weigh carefully.
For the Leafs, the appeal goes beyond the depth chart. Taylor is the brother of Toronto player Darren Raddysh, which means a claim would create a family tie that fans would instantly latch onto. It is the sort of feel-good angle that can make a mundane transaction a little more interesting, even if the final decision still comes down to how the Leafs want to handle the rest of the offseason. [Read more 🡒]
Former Leafs Just Landed In A Spot Toronto Can't Really Use
Several former Maple Leafs are among the names who surfaced on waivers as NHL clubs move to finalize their rosters ahead of the 2026-27 season deadline, a familiar point in the calendar when depth pieces start bouncing around the league. Steven Lorentz, Philippe Myers, Calle Rosen, Ilya Samsonov, Sam Lafferty, Henry Thrun and Sammy Blais are all in that group, giving teams 24 hours to decide whether they want to make a claim before those players are sent to their AHL affiliates.
For Toronto, the timing makes the whole thing more interesting but not especially practical. The Maple Leafs have limited roster and cap space after their recent signings, which means even a player with a familiar face or a useful fit has to clear more than just a quick look from the hockey ops staff. It is the kind of waiver window that can create a lot of noise around former Leafs, even when the path back to Toronto is harder than it looks. [Read more 🡒]