Rumor: Brad Treliving Interested In Trading For Three Penguins Players

One player the Leafs could target from the Penguins is defenseman Marcus Pettersson. The 27-year-old has proven to be a steady two-way player with excellent defensive instincts. The Leafs have lost the most games due to injury on defense with players like Mark Giordano and Timothy Liljegren missing large chunks of the year and John Klingberg being out for the season. Pettersson would go a long way to shoring up the Leafs backend.

Another area where the Leafs have had bad luck this season is between the pipes. Joseph Woll has been out an extended period due to an ankle injury and Ilya Samsonov has been inconsistent at best. Martin Jones has served the team well in his callup but the team likely will not want him as a top-two goalie going into the playoffs. Adding another goalie such as Pittsburgh's Alex Nedeljkovic could go a long way.

Finally, we get to take a look at the Penguins forward group. One player that stands out is Reilly Smith, who has already been in trade rumors this season.

Smith is still a capable depth scorer with 20 points in 41 games this season. This is an area where the Leafs have struggled since they entered the 'core-four' era. making the cap work would be difficult given his 5-million-dollar price tag, but with another year still on his deal, the Leafs could look to have improved depth for more than just the remainder of the season.

Stay tuned to see what moves the Leafs make at the March 8th trade deadline.

As seen on Maple Leafs Eyeing Three Potential Players with Kyle Dubas' Pittsburgh Penguins