Despite missing out on defenseman Nikita Zadorov, the Toronto Maple Leafs still appear focused on getting another blueliner.

The Toronto Maple Leafs battered blueline suffered another blow last week when Mark Giordano was sidelined by a broken finger. With John Klingberg and Timothy Liljegren already on the shelf, GM Brad Treliving remains in the market for a defenseman.

There was speculation last week that Treliving was speaking to the Calgary Flames (his former club) with an eye on Nikita Zadorov and Chris Tanev. On Saturday, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported the Leafs GM attempted to acquire both blueliners, but the deal fell apart because the two sides couldn't agree on how much salary the Flames would retain.

The Flames subsequently shipped Zadorov last Thursday to the Vancouver Canucks. However, Friedman believes the Leafs are still in on Tanev, given their need for a right-shot defenseman. His colleague Luke Fox thinks the 33-year-old rearguard would be a good fit on the right side of Morgan Rielly or Jake McCabe while bringing stability to the Leafs' penalty kill.

In an earlier report, Friedman believed the Flames are willing to entertain strong trade offers despite their recent improvement in the standings. He's not sure whether the Leafs will pursue pure playoff rental players but thinks they're pretty confident they could retain a Toronto native such as Tanev.

The Leafs are still awaiting confirmation whether Klingberg has a season-ending injury. If he does, it will clear sufficient cap room to acquire Tanev and his $4.5-million cap hit for this season.

Another club could swoop in ahead of the Leafs and acquire Tanev. The New Jersey Devils could be in the market after Dougie Hamilton was sidelined indefinitely following surgery last week to repair a torn pectoral muscle.