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It's rare in the sports world for both fanbases to view a trade as a win. However, with the Toronto Maple Leafs adding Brandon Carlo in a trade from the Boston Bruins for Fraser Minten and a first-round draft pick, it's approaching win-win territory. It's easy to grade it as that from the outlook, but how these players will fare on their new teams is another story. Regardless, both franchises leave the trade deadline happy in this case.
The most shocking part of his deal was the Bruins and Maple Leafs doing business together. The teams have had a storied rivalry over the past decade, and it seemed impossible that the Bruins would ever help bolster the Leafs' lineup heading into the playoffs. However, the Bruins entered the trade deadline with a clear goal of starting a rebuild, and the Leafs offered the best return for Carlo.
According to sources, the Leafs also kicked the tires on former Bruins' captain Brad Marchand. It would've been fair to assume the Bruins didn't make that deal because giving them a player of his stature and leadership abilities was a bridge too far. However, they moved him to the Florida Panthers, which you can argue was a more significant rivalry for the Bruins with their playoff matchups over the past two seasons.
It might hurt for Bruins fans to see the state of their team after the trade deadline, but it'll hopefully be worth it in the long run. The question is, did the Carlo trade give them the best return of the day? It's safe to say that the return on Carlo was better than the conditional second-round pick they received for Marchand.
Brandon Carlo was a defenseman the Leafs lacked
A big body on the blueline was one of the massive holes in the Maple Leafs' lineup entering the trade deadline. The Leafs have some good defensive defensemen, but there isn't much physicality amongst the group. Carlo doesn't bring as much physicality as they'd like, but his above-average size and long stick can be an asset when trying to shut down the other team's best players in the postseason.
Carlo has been a valuable piece of the Bruins for the last nine years. He has never been a top-pairing guy, usually holding down the second pair while Zdeno Chara and Charlie McAvoy slid into the first pairing. However, Carlo often took on some of the defensive assignments. Carlo and Hampus Lindholm were the pairing tasked with shutting down Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner in last year's postseason, something they did with significant success.
The Leafs will need someone who can play down the lineup but match up against the team's top line. The Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning bolstered their lineups at the deadline, and they now have a couple of forward lines you could label as their best. Chris Tanev can't match up against every line, so Carlo must take some of those duties.
Carlo also isn't purely a rental, which means the Leafs have his services for the next two seasons. If they agree on an extension, Carlo can be a valuable depth defenseman in Toronto for the rest of his career. The issue is that the Toronto market isn't always kind to less physical defensemen. It'll be interesting to see how they welcome Carlo.
Bruins' rebuild hit its stride at trade deadline
Don Sweeney did well to kickstart the Bruins' rebuild. Boston has been a contending team for the last 16 years, so there isn't much left in the prospect cupboard. The front office wanted to add picks and soon-to-be-NHL-ready talent. They acquired Fraser Minten and a first-round pick in this deal, which you can say is mission accomplished.
Minten might not be the NHL prospect the Leafs thought they were getting when they picked him in the first round. However, he'll be a valuable bottom-six center for a long time in the NHL. The Bruins played Charlie Coyle in a more significant role than they should've, but Coyle was at his best in a Boston uniform during the 2019 playoffs and 2022-23 record-breaking regular season when he was their third-line center.
Coyle was one of the players the Bruins lost at the trade deadline, and Minten can be the player to fill that role. He will likely stay with the Providence Bruins for the balance of this season, but expect him to be a staple of the lineup starting in 2025-26.
The 2026 first-round pick is also an intriguing piece. With the pending free agency of Mitch Marner and an already fragile group in Toronto, there's no telling how far the Maple Leafs could fall next year if they fall short again in this year's playoffs. It is top-five protected, but that shouldn't come into play, as the Leafs won't fall that far from grace.
Boston Bruins grade: A
Toronto Maple Leafs grade: A-
