The Philadelphia Flyers don't plan to extend Rasmus Ristolainen, and the Toronto Maple Leafs suddenly have a reason to pick up the phone.
Frank Seravalli reported the veteran will be one of the top trade chips this season, and he could move well before the deadline if the losing keeps piling up.
It hasn't stopped. Carolina beat Philadelphia 4-1 on Sunday night, dropping the Flyers to 0-5-2.
That's a -20 goal differential already. Rick Tocchet's group ranks 31st overall, and GM Daniel Briere has little reason to hang onto a veteran he won't re-sign.
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Toronto's need is obvious. Chris Tanev is on injured reserve with an upper-body injury and isn't expected back until at least Oct. 19.
The Leafs are 3-2-1 after Saturday night's 6-3 win in Colorado, and Jim Hiller heads to Utah on Tuesday without his most reliable shutdown piece.
The rest of the blue line isn't inspiring much confidence. Darren Raddysh carries an $8.5 million cap hit and has already gone minus-4.
The Ristolainen fix comes with its own injury problem
Here's the part nobody in Toronto wants to read. Ristolainen is on injured reserve himself, also with an upper-body injury.
He's dressed for only three games this season, scoring once, and wasn't in the lineup Sunday against the Hurricanes.
So the idea that he's the more durable option needs an asterisk. Maybe two.
Swapping a 36-year-old for a 31-year-old to get younger is like trading in your 2012 sedan for a 2016 model with the check-engine light already blinking.
The upside is real. Buffalo drafted him eighth overall in 2013, and the 6-foot-4 Finn has morphed into a heavy, shutdown defender in Philadelphia.
His $5.1 million cap hit sits just above the $4.5 million Toronto pays Tanev.
And whoever lands him is likely staring at a new contract, with that number probably climbing.
That's where this falls apart for Toronto. The Leafs keep shopping in the same aisle, and another thirtysomething on the back end won't give this group the legs it's missing.
Philadelphia won't care who calls first. Travis Sanheim has gone minus-10, Cam York is day-to-day, and Daniel Vladar sits at an .857 save percentage behind them.
The Flyers host Seattle on Tuesday. Another loss, and Briere's phone gets a lot louder.
These two teams don't meet until Nov. 30 in Toronto. By then, Ristolainen could be wearing a different sweater, or still be waiting to get off the shelf.
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Should the Maple Leafs trade for Rasmus Ristolainen while he's still on injured reserve?
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