The Toronto Maple Leafs have reportedly acquired defenseman Ilya Lyubushkin in a three-way trade involving the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Carolina Hurricanes.
Lyubushkin, 29, has four points (all assists) while averaging 17:09 of ice time in 55 games with the Ducks this season. He’s under contract through the end of the year at a $2.75 million cap hit.
The three-way deal sees the Ducks receive a 2025 third-round pick in exchange for the 6’2″ right-handed defenseman. The Ducks retained 50 percent of Lyubushkin’s remaining salary; the Hurricanes retained an additional 25 percent and received a 2024 sixth-round pick for the trouble.
The Leafs defeated the Arizona Coyotes by a 4–2 score on Thursday but lost veteran defenseman Mark Giordano, who suffered a head injury in the game and did not return. Lyubushkin, who previously played for the Leafs in 2021–22, will provide additional depth at the defense position.
Lyubushkin signed his first NHL contract with the Coyotes back in 2018 as an undrafted free agent from the KHL club Lokomotiv Yaroslavl.
The Coyotes agreed to four consecutive one-year deals with Lyubushkin before trading him to the Leafs midway through the 2021–22 season. The deal saw the Coyotes acquire Nick Ritchie and a 2025 second-round pick in exchange for Lyubushkin and Ryan Dzingel.
After skating in 38 games (including seven in the playoffs) with the Leafs to close out the season, Lyubushkin signed a two-year deal with the Buffalo Sabres on July 13, 2022. He lasted one year in Buffalo before being flipped to the Ducks in exchange for a 2025 fourth-round pick.
Through 334 career NHL games over parts of six seasons with the Coyotes, Leafs, Sabres, and Ducks, Lyubushkin has collected five goals and 43 points. He added a single assist in his seven playoff games with Toronto in 2022.
The Ducks are expected to be sellers ahead of the March 8 trade deadline. In addition to Lyubushkin, they could part ways with forwards Adam Henrique, Jakob Silfverberg, Frank Vatrano, and Sam Carrick.
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