The Toronto Maple Leafs traded center Denis Malgin to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for left winger Dryden Hunt, the clubs announced Monday. Here’s what you need to know:
- In 28 games with Colorado and the New York Rangers this season, the 27-year-old Hunt has two goals and 15 penalty minutes.
- Malgin, 25, has two goals and two assists in 23 games with Toronto this year.
- The Maple Leafs are second in the Atlantic Division at 19-7-6 while the defending champion Avalanche are fourth in the Central Division at 16-11-2.
Backstory
Malgin has 64 points (30 goals, 34 assists) in 215 regular-season career games over six NHL seasons with the Florida Panthers and Maple Leafs. Hunt has 42 points (14 goals, 28 assists) in 193 career regular-season games over his career with the Panthers, Arizona Coyotes, Rangers and Avalanche.
Why Toronto made the deal
After a decent start to the season in which he netted two goals in his first six games playing limited minutes, Malgin’s production began to crater: he did not score in November or December and had just two assists in that 17-game stretch. The opportunities for Malgin were certainly there: he spent a recent stretch on the Leafs’ second line alongside John Tavares and Mitch Marner. Malgin has some tenacity and speed in his game, but playing alongside those two players the production needs to follow, especially considering the heater that Marner has been on lately. — Kloke
How Hunt fits with the Maple Leafs
The Leafs remain in need of a forward who can produce in a top six role, and that could be at the top of their shopping list ahead of the trade deadline. Hunt won’t fill that role, but he could get a look on the Leafs’ fourth line. Hunt is more of a defensively-minded forward and serving a depth role makes some sense. His best season, production-wise, was in 2021-22 with the Rangers when he had six goals and 17 points in 76 games. But even then, Hunt was miscast in a top six role. — Kloke
What Malgin brings to Colorado’s system
Malgin is a skilled player, and his speed should fit well in Colorado’s system. He had strong production in the Swiss league and represented the country at the Olympics, but his scoring has not translated to North America. His strongest NHL season point-wise came with Florida in 2017-18, when he scored 11 goals and added 11 assists in 51 games. It’s also notable that Malgin is a right-handed shot and the Avs lack righties. Considering Hunt was a waiver-wire pickup, the trade is a worthwhile flier for Colorado to take. — Baugh
How the Avs’ lineup has varied
Malgin will be the 36th Avalanche player to appear in a game this year. The team is well on its way to breaking the 40-player mark on the year, especially since Gabriel Landeskog and Darren Helm both haven’t played and are expected to be back during the regular season. He will be the fourth Swiss player to appear in a game for the team, per the Avs. — Baugh
Required reading
(Photo: David Kirouac / USA Today)
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