NHL Trade Rumors: Dealing for Derick Brassard Is Worth the Risk for Maple Leafs

There seems to be a multitude of new trade deadline rumors surrounding the Toronto Maple Leafs on a daily basis.

One of the latest possibilities has underachieving Columbus Blue Jackets forward Derick Brassard heading to the Leafs in a deal that makes plenty of sense for both sides.

According to Bob Mitchell of the Toronto Star, Toronto has interest in the former No. 6 overall pick in the 2006 draft. Brassard has failed to live up to his undeniable potential, although he seemed to take a step in the right direction last season with 17 goals and 47 points on the year.

Brassard has just 22 points in 48 games this season, and he has often found himself in the press box as a healthy scratch due to inconsistent performance. The Blue Jackets are the worst team in the league by an 11-point margin, so changes need to be made, and dealing a player who has fallen out of favor with the organization seems like a logical move.

At the age of 24, there is still time for Brassard to become the player so many thought he could be, but it's beginning to look like that won't happen in Columbus.

The Blue Jackets are entertaining the idea of dealing Rick Nash and Jeff Carter and could be entering a complete rebuild, so they could decide to keep Brassard, but I expect them to go in a different direction.

The Leafs currently sit in eighth place in the Eastern Conference, but general manager Brian Burke has always said that there is no point in making the playoffs unless there is damage to be done. The current Maple Leafs may be a playoff team, but whether they can make some noise in the postseason is an entirely different question.

Toronto likely needs to add a couple more pieces, and Brassard would be a low-risk, high-reward target. He would fit snugly under the Leafs' salary cap as they have $3.2 million and change in space while Brassard has a cap hit of $3.2 million.

He is signed for two additional years after this season so there would be some commitment on Toronto's part, but it's the type of risk the Leafs can afford to take. Toronto has a lot of forward depth, so it can stay afloat if Brassard tanks, but if he thrives then it will add a whole new dimension to the team.

Mitchell speculated that Columbus might be looking for a defenseman in return. Luke Schenn is a possibility, but that would be a bit too steep in my estimation. The smarter move would likely be to offer Carl Gunnarsson, Cody Franson or minor-leaguer Keith Aulie—all would be pretty equal in value to Brassard.

The Leafs already have a ton of solid defensemen, so dealing one for Brassard wouldn't weaken their defense corps in the least. With that said, it really comes down to where Brassard would fit in. He's a center by trade, but the Leafs already have four pivots entrenched in Tyler Bozak, Mikhail Grabovski, Tim Connolly and Dave Steckel.

That means Brassard would probably have to slot in as a winger on the third line, knocking either Joey Crabb or Matthew Lombardi down to the fourth line. It would be an interesting idea, because Connolly is really struggling right now, so if he and Brassard can build a rapport, it would almost be like acquiring two new players at the deadline.

Brassard's overall numbers on the season may not be impressive, but he has been heating up as of late with six points in his past six games.

Brassard wouldn't be a splashy acquisition for Burke and the Leafs, but he has enough untapped potential that it makes sense to take a chance on him.