Maple Leafs acquire Nick Paul in trade with Lightning

The Toronto Maple Leafs have been very active in NHL Free Agency. And that’s to say nothing of the signings they’ve made. Toronto is overhauling its roster in a huge way. Part of that overhaul now includes forward Nick Paul from the Tampa Bay Lightning.

The Maple Leafs are acquiring Paul from the Lightning in a trade, the team announced on Wednesday. In return, Tampa received three assets. Goaltender Dennis Hildeby and two draft picks are headed to Tampa in this trade.

Paul had spent parts of the last five seasons with Tampa. He found a lot of success as the Bolts continued to be one of the best teams in hockey. Prior to the 2025-26 season, the 31-year-old had scored 46 goals and 87 points in 146 games across three full seasons.

Unfortunately, the 2025-26 campaign wasn’t so kind to Paul. He was limited to 51 games with the Lightning, scoring just seven goals and 15 points. When he was on the ice, he didn’t see much of it. He averaged a little less than 14 minutes of ice time in 2025-26.

A change of scenery could certainly help Paul find his stride again. He is a two-time 20-goal scorer. And prior to the 2025-26 campaign, he had scored at least 15 goals in each of the previous four seasons. There is value in that for any team, including the Maple Leafs.

The Maple Leafs are parting ways with a young goaltender in Hildeby. The 24-year-old played in 20 games for the Leafs this past season, recording a .912 save percentage. The Maple Leafs signed Sergei Bobrovsky in NHL Free Agency, though, which made Hildeby expendable.