The tradeBlues get: Defenseman Brandon CarloMaple Leafs get: Two 2026 third-round picks (Nos. 73 and 76)At long last, the Brandon Carlo trade nightmare is over in Toronto. Well, over at least until the Boston Bruins use the Leafs first-round pick in 2028, I suppose.After dealing a first and fourth round picks, plus top center prospect Fraser Minten, to Boston for Carlo at the 2025 trade deadline, the Maple Leafs recouped two picks in the 70s only 15 months later. It’s obviously hugely disappointing from an asset management standpoint, but with Carlo having a difficult 2025-26 season and set to become an unrestricted free agent in July 2027, Toronto getting something for the big defender makes sense.The Leafs weren’t going to extend the 29-year-old, not with so many other veterans already under contract and new GM John Chayka’s edict that he wants Toronto’s D better able to move the puck. Now that he’s shipped out both Carlo and Simon Benoit, and added Darren Raddysh and Emil Andrae, that vision is taking shape. The Tree-fence is no more.
They could still use at least one more top-four blueliner, especially given Morgan Rielly is still likely to be dealt. How Chayka deploys the $3.5 million they were paying Carlo to continue to reshape his defense will be an important knock-on impact from this deal, as Toronto now has acres of cap space to maneuver heading into free agency on Wednesday.Just how bad the 2025 trade for Carlo ultimately looks for the organization will depend on how high that first-rounder becomes for the Bruins, although with how well Minten played this year for Boston, it already has the makings of a debacle.But the Blues aren’t getting a dud here. Carlo struggled with a significant injury this past season after blocking a shot with his foot and then having the area get infected. Even during a down year, however, he still brings experience, leadership, size — at 6-foot-5 and 230 pounds — and a dependable defensive presence as a depth defender, something St. Louis needs to stabilize its roster. Never a crasher and banger, or a fighter, Carlo excels the most when you don’t notice him, as he can push opposition forwards to the outside and play well positionally, using his long reach and stick to disrupt zone entries and passing plays.Playing back with Jim Montgomery, his former Bruins coach, should help Carlo regain his form, although it’s worth noting that he hasn’t been quite the same player he was earlier in his career for a few seasons now, likely due to various injuries that include concussions.In a worst-case scenario, the Blues should be able to flip him for at least one of those third-round picks back at the 2027 trade deadline, assuming they’re not in playoff position next spring.At least they didn’t trade a high first-round pick and good prospect for him? Not that anyone would do that again.Blues grade: B-
