Rick Nash Trade Rumors: 5 Reasons He Would Be a Great Fit for the Maple Leafs

With the trade deadline fast approaching, there has been no shortage of rumors surrounding the Toronto Maple Leafs and Blue Jackets superstar forward Rick Nash.

At this point, it looks like the only big names on the market are Jeff Carter and Rick Nash (seeing as Anaheim has fought their way back into playoff contention and will probably keep all of their young talent).

While Carter would fill that pesky No. 1 center role the that has alluded the Maple Leafs for some time, his contract isn't the type of contract Brian Burke likes on his team.

Carter would also only fit one of the Maple Leafs needs at forward, while Rick Nash would help the Leafs in many different areas.

Here are five reasons why Rick Nash would be a great fit in the blue and white.

Nash Would Bring the Size the Maple Leafs Need Up Front

It should come as no surprise to anyone that the Leafs are looking for some size up front.

A strong physical presence would do this team a world of good, especially in the offensive zone and when it comes to those puck battles in the corners.

Rick Nash is one of the rare top-tier players that can bring size to a team along with his offensive abilities.

At 6'4" and 218 pounds (per hockeydb.com), Nash could be that big body the Leafs have been looking to plug into their lineup up front.

Excellent Source of Secondary Scoring

Another obvious reason the Maple Leafs are after Rick Nash is for his natural scoring ability.

Up until this point, the Leafs haven't had any real solid, consistent scoring from anyone besides the Phil Kessel, Joffrey Lupul and Tyler Bozak line (with the exception of Mikahil Grabovski).

Adding Rick Nash to this team would certainly make the Leafs a much more potent team offensively and would give them two solid lines to look to for consistent offensive production.

Adding Rick Nash to a line with Grabovski and MacArthur (assuming MacArthur is not involved in the deal for Rick Nash) would also up the game of MacArthur and probably Grabovski as well.

That line would also contain all the ingredients for success, with Rick Nash being a scoring, as well as a power forward, Mikhail Grabovski acting as the speedy playmaking forward and Clarke MacArthur being a goal-scoring forward as well.

It Would Force Opposing Teams to Contain 2 Dominant Lines

This could be one of the most important reasons why Rick Nash would be extremely valuable to the Leafs.

He wouldn't just bring scoring and size, but he would also give the Leafs a second first line.

With opposing teams consistently throwing their top pairing at Joffrey Lupul, Phil Kessel and Tyler Bozak (especially on the road where the home team gets to choose their line last after a whistle), the Leafs desperately need a secondary line to be able to exploit a matchup with an opponent's second defensive pairing.

Eventually teams would have a real dilemma on their hands and would be forced to either split up their shutdown defensemen or occasionally use their first pairing on the Maple Leafs' second line.

Either of those situations would do a great service for the top line.

This is an important reason why adding a big-name left winger can be just as beneficial as adding a first-line center.

Nash Would Bring More Experience to the Team

Believe it or not, at age of 27, Rick Nash would instantly become one of the older players on this Maple Leafs' roster.

Right now, the Leafs don't have a single player on their roster older than 30.

This means Rick Nash would actually be one of the veterans on this Leafs team.

That's not all he would bring to the table in terms of experience though.

Rick Nash has been the face of the Columbus Blue Jackets franchise for as long as they've existed.

He's been their captain and leader since the 2008-2009 season, when he led the Blue Jackets to their lone postseason appearance.

Nash has also represented Canada on an international scale several times. He's been a part of the last two Olympic teams (including the 2010 gold medal winning team), three World Championship teams (which ended up in him winning two silver medals to go with a gold medal) and a World Junior Championship team (winning a silver medal in 2002).

A Move for Nash Would Shake Things Up

When players like Rick Nash are traded away, it tends to rock the hockey world.

A major shakeup could be precisely what this Maple Leafs team needs right now.

In the midst of a 1-5-1 collapse, this Leafs squad is barely hanging on to the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference and is losing touch with the teams in front of them, making it unlikely they'll be able to move any higher in the standings come season's end.

Moving a few pieces from their current roster as well as a prospect or two is bound to send a message to the players.

The time to win is now.

From the goaltenders, right up to the forwards, a move like this tends to show the players just how serious management is about winning, and that may be the message that this Leafs squad needs to hear come Monday.

Follow @LeafsWriterBR