Treliving pulls all-nighter to address Leafs needs at the deadline

The Maple Leafs practised at Magness Arena at the University of Denver on Friday. General manager Brad Treliving met with the media at a hotel in downtown Denver.

---

Asked about the salary retention involved in a pair of deadline-day trades, a bleary-eyed Brad Treliving wasn't sure at first.

"I've been up for a long time," the Leafs general manager said before confirming, with an assist from media relations vice-president Steve Keogh, that it was 50 per cent for centre Scott Laughton, who is coming over from the Philadelphia Flyers, and 15 per cent for defenceman Brandon Carlo, who was acquired from the Boston Bruins.

Despite hunkering down inside a downtown Denver hotel on Thursday, Treliving didn't get much sleep ahead of the NHL's trade deadline.

"I pulled an all-nighter," he admitted with a smile. "But my all-nighters aren't as fun as they used to be."

The 55-year-old executive acknowledged it was hard to determine which players were actually available on Friday and which teams were actually selling.

"Always like to try to get things done as early as you can," he said. "And I was hoping that the blue-light specials would come on. They didn't come on as quick as I'd hoped."

It may have been a grind, but the patience paid off as the Leafs addressed their two biggest needs: centre depth and the right side of the blue line. 

The Leafs prioritized acquiring players with term and Carlo is under contract through the 2026-27 season with a $3.485-million cap hit while Laughton is under contract through 2025-26 with a $1.5-million hit.

Treliving insists he wasn't influenced by the moves made by Atlantic Division rivals in Florida and Tampa Bay.

"You've got to be real focused on, and be disciplined on, executing the plan that we set out really back in January," Treliving said.

---

Carlo, who stands 6-foot-5, 220 pounds, projects to slot in beside Morgan Rielly in Toronto's top four and play a key role on the penalty kill.

"He's big," said Treliving. "He's long, great stick, defends the blue paint really well. Excellent on the penalty kill. Tremendous character. He's been a big part of the success that's gone on in Boston, and they've had a lot of it."

When it became clear that Bruins general manager Don Sweeney was in sell mode, Treliving made his move and offered a first-round selection in the 2026 draft (top-five protected), Philadelphia's fourth-round selection in 2025, which had been acquired earlier in the day, and the organization's top centre prospect Fraser Minten. 

"He's been on our radar for a long time," said Treliving of Carlo. "You don't know when players are going to become available."

"Definitely a shocker when I heard that it was Toronto," Carlo told James Duthie on TradeCentre. "What an opportunity for me to go in there and try and help this team win."

Carlo has nine points and is plus-two in 63 games with the Bruins this season. He led Boston with 119 blocked shots.

With Chris Tanev missing the last four games due to an upper-body injury, the need for another defensive-minded defenceman was hammered home.

"I just wanted to make sure that we had that type of profile and try to spread those minutes out around a little bit more," Treliving said.

Toronto's depth on the right side of the blue line has been an issue, in part, because Jani Hakanpää, a summer signing, has only been able to play in two games due to a nagging knee injury.

---

The need down the middle has been apparent for some time. The team briefly experimented with William Nylander at centre in training camp, but coach Craig Berube quickly moved the smooth-skating Swede back to his usual spot on right wing.

Max Domi, who has scored just four goals this season, has been the team's third-line pivot much of the year and played in that spot again during Wednesday's loss in Las Vegas.  

Enter Laughton, who was acquired along with a fourth-round selection in 2025 draft and a sixth-round selection in the 2027 draft in exchange for Toronto's first-round selection in the 2027 draft and forward prospect Nikita Grebenkin.

Treliving has had his eyes on Laughton since he played in the Ontario Hockey League.

"I've been watching Scotty Laughton since he was in Oshawa," Treliving said. "He's been a captain wherever he goes. You look and see some of the things being said about him in Philly today [as he's] leaving, just a character guy."

Laughton has 11 goals and 16 assists in 60 games with the Flyers this season. He's second on the team with 129 hits.

The 30-year-old from Oakville, Ont. grew up a Leafs fan.

"I can tell you, as hard as it was for him, he's been a Flyer his whole life, he was emotional talking about coming home and playing for the Leafs," Treliving said. "I know that was a really important chapter in his life in Philly, but he's excited to start one here."

"It's pretty surreal," Laughton told Duthie just 10 minutes after learning the news. "Excited for a chance at the playoffs. It's been a little bit here in Philly."

Berube was an assistant coach with the Flyers when Laughton first entered in the league and eventually became his head coach in Philadelphia.

"We are getting a great teammate, for one," Berube told reporters. "He is a really good person. Two, he is a guy who is versatile. He can play centre, penalty kill, and some power play. He touches all aspects of the game. He plays a physical brand of hockey and is a hard-nosed player, but he has ability."

Berube noted that he's always liked Laughton at centre despite his versatility.

Both Laughton and Carlo are expected to make their debuts on Saturday night against the Colorado Avalanche.

---

The Leafs created roster spots and cap space by trading defenceman Conor Timmins and forward Connor Dewar to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for a fifth-round pick in the 2025 draft. Both players were on the ice at practice when the deals went down.

Asked about the additions he made, Treliving made a point of first thanking the players who are leaving the organization.

"That's the tough part about today is you have to, in some cases, say goodbye to real good people," Treliving said. "All four were great Leafs."

Grebenkin made his NHL debut earlier this season when the Leafs dealt with a series of injuries up front. The 21-year-old quickly became a fan favourite due to his gritty game and outgoing personality.

Minten made his NHL debut last season getting into four games before being sent back to juniors. He got into 15 games with the Leafs this season, but has spent most of the year in the American Hockey League.

"You can't say enough about Fraser," Treliving said. "He's just a wonderful, wonderful young man. So, to get good players, you've got to give good players."

Amid the flurry of deals, the Leafs were able to retain top prospect Easton Cowan, who is playing for the London Knights.

"Nothing is ever off the table, but certainly we think Easton's a terrific young player," Treliving said. "It would have taken a significant impact for us ... but glad today that Easton's part of it and still with us. I figured that was going to be the case barring something unforeseen."

---

The Leafs started to lay the groundwork for the deadline moves by placing Ryan Reaves on waivers on Thursday. The veteran winger cleared on Friday and was assigned to the AHL. It's his first demotion from the NHL since the 2012-13 season.

"That was a difficult conversation," said Treliving, who signed Reaves to a three-year deal in the summer of 2023. "Ryan's a true pro. This isn't goodbye. Ryan's still a big part of our locker room ... I'm going to speak with him later today. Him and I will get caught up."

Reaves had been a healthy scratch in eight of the previous 11 games, but is a popular teammate, who was signed in part to provide personality and leadership in the dressing room.

"My hope is we can get him back here sooner rather than later," Berube said, "But, obviously, you've got to work within the guidelines there. But I'm glad that Ryan didn't go anywhere today."

---

Auston Matthews expressed his desire for the Leafs to make some trades on Wednesday morning. And the Leafs captain was happy with the results on Friday.

"It'll definitely give us, like I said the other day, an extra boost," Matthews told reporters. "Two good players. I actually know both of them decently well."

Matthews played with Carlo at the 2016 World Juniors.

"Awesome, awesome guy," Matthews said. "Super down to earth. Yeah, he's a big man. Hard to play against. Hard to get by and a long reach. Happy to be on his side and playing with him now."

Matthews also has a connection to Laughton.

"I did a camp in Florida many years back, and we actually flew to Toronto together," Matthews said. "So got to know him throughout the camp, throughout our travels and, yeah, he's a good player, hard to play against, plays with some edge, so definitely a guy you want on your team."

---

Tanev participated in his first full practice since sustaining an upper-body injury, but is "doubtful" to play on Saturday, Berube said.

---

Lines at Friday's practice:

Knies - Matthews - Marner

Holmberg - Tavares - Nylander

McMann - Domi - Robertson

Lorentz - Kampf - Jarnkrok

Dewar


Rielly - Myers

McCabe - Ekman-Larsson

Benoit - Timmins

Tanev


Stolarz

Woll