Maple Leafs Trade Dennis Hildeby And Picks To Lightning In Exchange For Nick Paul
After an abundance of moves on the free agency front, the Toronto Maple Leafs added center Nick Paul in a trade that sent away goaltender Dennis Hildeby, as well as a pair of draft picks.
On a day with an abundance of free agency signings, Toronto Maple Leafs GM John Chayka still wasn't finished reshaping his team.
After acquiring Brandon Duhaime, Sergei Bobrovsky, Jack Roslovic, Teddy Blueger and Colton Sissons with new contracts, he traded for Tampa Bay Lightning center Nick Paul in exchange for Dennis Hildeby, a 2027 fourth-round pick, and a 2028 third-round pick.
Paul, a Mississauga native, comes to Toronto with three more years remaining on his contract at a $3.15 million salary cap hit.
The 31-year-old has been an effective middle-six player for the Lightning, spending parts of the past five seasons with the team.
This past year, Paul has scored seven goals and 15 points in 51 games, losing plenty of ice time to the other stars that occupy Tampa Bay's lineup.
However, in the two seasons before 2025-26, Paul recorded back-to-back 20-goal, 40-point campaigns while averaging 16:52 between those two years. He had a far more important role than in the past season, when he played just 13:41 of ice time per game.
Going out the other way, Hildeby has emerged as a promising young goaltender in the NHL. The 24-year-old played 20 games for the Maple Leafs in 2025-26, recording an impressive .914 save percentage and a 2.86 goals-against average.
With two years remaining on the contract that sees him earn $841,667 against the cap, Hildeby is not waiver-exempt next season. With the addition of Sergei Bobrovsky and Anthony Stolarz already with the NHL tandem, there was a risk of losing Hildeby for nothing.
Instead, Chayka is able to bring in a solid NHL player in Paul, someone who has terrorized the Maple Leafs with the Lightning and the Ottawa Senators over the years.
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