The Toronto Maple Leafs have a logjam of bottom pairing defenders, which made Harrington expendable – especially considering he has to be protected for the expansion draft.
Kerby Rychel has wanted out of Columbus for some time. It was a perfect match.
In Rychel, the Toronto Maple Leafs get yet another good young forward to add to their system. Rychel had solid a 5v5 pts/60 number of 1.79, comparable to Jaden Schwartz in St. Louis. He plays a pretty good defensive game, allowing one less shot attempt per 60 minutes of 5v5 time, relative to his Blue Jackets teammates last year.