Toronto Maple Leafs linked to star blue liner Jakob Chychrun

Despite optimism heading into the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Toronto Maple Leafs once again fell short in the first round, and now they've got some major decisions to make. Since their game seven loss, there's been plenty of reports that Mitch Marner could be on the way out via trade, and now the team have been linked to much help.

The obvious move for Toronto is to target a blue liner, and according to David Pagnotta, they could be looking to one of their biggest rivals, with Jakob Chychrun listed as a potential option for Toronto.

Chychrun was only acquired by Ottawa last season, but given their lack of success since his arrival, it makes sense that they may be looking to acquire future pieces before he hits free agency. It's unclear whether or not Toronto would look to use Marner in this deal, as he holds a full NMC, but with some exciting future pieces, the team could look to win now and push for a star on the blue line.

Beyond that, the team need to find plenty more depth, especially defensively given their lack of puck moving stars, so look for conversations to heat up with Ottawa and other teams with blue line pieces over the next few weeks and months.