Maple Leafs Traded Quality for This Defenceman: Watch

There was a time this summer when I thought the Toronto Maple Leafs might have made a pretty strange trade. They gave up Joseph Woll, a goalie they had drafted, developed and stuck with through some pretty good moments and some pretty difficult ones. Woll had been part of the organization for years.

And what did they get back? A 24-year-old defenceman named Emil Andrae who, at first glance, doesn't exactly scream “blockbuster acquisition.” But the more you read about him, the more interesting Andrae becomes.

Not because I expect him to suddenly become a Norris Trophy candidate. I don't. It's because he might bring something to the Maple Leafs' defence that could make him one of those players you actually enjoy watching every night.

I’m ready to watch how Andrae likes to play.

That's probably the simplest way I can put it. He's not the biggest defenceman. He's not going to spend the night throwing people through the glass. He's not going to make his living standing in front of the net and clearing everybody out. His game is more about what happens after he gets the puck.

And that's where things could get interesting in Toronto. Andrae has some offensive ability, and his AHL numbers suggest there is more there than we've seen so far in the NHL. He had 32 points in 61 games with Lehigh Valley in 2023-24 and then 16 points in just 25 games the following season.

With the Flyers last season, he had two goals and 11 assists in 61 games. Those aren't big numbers. But they're enough to make you wonder.

What will happen if Andrae gets comfortable?

What happens if he starts believing he belongs? And what happens if Toronto gives him a little freedom to move the puck instead of simply telling him to survive his shift? That's the part I'm looking forward to.

The Maple Leafs have plenty of defencemen who can play a fairly traditional game. Andrae could be different. He can see the ice, move the puck and potentially turn a defensive-zone recovery into an offensive play before the other team has a chance to get organized. Those are the defencemen I like watching. They make you concentrate a little more.

You don't quite know what they're going to do when they get the puck. And maybe that's what makes this trade worth watching.

Andrae is not a finished product, but that might be a good thing.

The Maple Leafs didn't trade Joseph Woll for a finished product. They traded for a young defenceman who still has some growing to do. That's the gamble.

But if Andrae takes that next step, Toronto may have acquired something more valuable than another steady bottom-pairing defenceman. They may have found a guy who makes the defence a little more interesting.

And after watching the Maple Leafs for the past few seasons, I'll take interesting.