I hope they can sign someone of some significance, and not overpay too much, although it'll happen if it's someone good.
Well John Carlson fits the bill for that perfectly.
I wonder if the Leafs still sign Ozhiganov and how he would fit into the lineup? Would only be a bottom pairing guy but perhaps someone who could be a more skilled Polak?
There's a lot of good options the Leafs could explore. Just through pure internal movement, Hainsey will probably get cut down to 20 minutes a night next year with Dermott going up closer to 18-19 to make up for it. Rielly, Zaitsev and Gardiner (assuming he sticks around) will probably still get 22-23 minutes a night. Then really you just need one guy who can handle PK and like 16 minutes a night. That's not that hard to find most likely.
Alternatively, the Leafs could look at trading Gardiner and getting an equivalent or better RD in return. Just depends upon how the Leafs want to structure their lineup (stacked top 4 vs. balanced top 6).
LD: Rielly (1), Gardiner (2/3), Dermott (5) | Borgman, Rosen, Nielsen, Marincin (RFA), Middleton (if signed)
RD: Zaitsev (2/3), Hainsey (4), Carrick (6/7), UFA (Ozhiganov?) (6/7) | Holl, LoVerde, Liljegren, Mattinen (if signed)
OR
LD: Rielly (1), Dermott (5), Borgman (6/7) | Rosen, Nielsen, Marincin (RFA), Middleton (if signed)
RD: Zaitsev (3), Hainsey (4), Trade/UFA (2), Carrick/Ozhiganov (6/7, if Hainsey swaps over to LD to get them in over Borgman) | Holl, LoVerde, Liljegren, Mattinen (if signed).
I think it's far more likely we just see the first option next year, with the most drastic changes being that Dermott gets more minutes in favour of Hainsey and Ozhiganov (or a different UFA) replaces Polak in the rotation with Carrick. Do not know how many fans are going to like it, and it would have been a lot easier if the Leafs decided to sell off their UFA's. Could have easily had the assets to pick up a good guy to supplement the defense.