Called back up with the Maple Leafs but outside of the team's top-12 forward group, do the club and the team decide to part ways when the player becomes a restricted free agent? Cade Webber continues to hit milestones following his acquisition by the Maple Leafs. The 23-year-old was selected as the best defensive defenseman in Hockey East on Wednesday, three days after being named the Hockey East defender of the week [https://x.com/TerrierHockey/status/1767253700014182757?s=20]. The Maple Leafs acquired Webber on Mar. 7 from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for their sixth-round pick in the 2026 NHL draft. Listed at 6-foot-7 and weighing 210 pounds, Webber was picked by the Hurricanes in the fourth round (99th) overall of the 2019 NHL draft. "Cade is a guy that our guys have been tracking a lot. Not just this year, but even prior to that," Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving said following the trade deadline on Friday. "He's a long defender. I know people might look at his stat line. He's a defense-first guy. He's a big body. He moves well, moves the puck well. But his calling card is defending, penalty killing, those types of things. "He's a guy who's a little bit further along in terms of his development. Chris Bourque (Toronto's College Free Agent Scout) [did] a lot of work on this. This is a guy he's tracked hard. When the opportunity came to acquire him, we did." Along with the two selections he received this week, Webber broke the NCAA's division one men's hockey blocked shots record, which was 113. He broke the record on Mar. 8 and is now up to 118 blocked shots on the season, 52 ahead of the next player on his team. Webber has six assists in 32 games this season with a Boston University team that's second in the NCAA Hockey East with 57 points, only behind Boston College who has 61. They're a team that both Webber and the Maple Leafs hope can go on a long run in the playoffs before the organization looks to sign the defenseman this summer. "He's with a real good team and hopefully they go on a long run at BU," Treliving said, "and then hopefully we can get him signed after." Image [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAwNTk1MTUxMDE2NDM2ODQ0/cf1808c0-6a82-4298-9049-3eb2eae105b0.jpg] Related 'I Understand It But I'm Not Going To Sit Here And Say That I'm Happy': Maple Leafs' Roster Shuffle Tests Nick Robertson's Patience Upon His Return to the Team [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs/latest-news/i-understand-it-but-im-not-going-to-sit-here-and-say-that-im-happy-maple-leafs-roster-shuffle-tests-nick-robertsons-patience-upon-his-return-to-the-team] 'They Weren't Very Good': New Look Maple Leafs Line of Auston Matthews with Tyler Bertuzzi and William Nylander Gets Terrible Review in Win Against Canadiens [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs/latest-news/they-werent-very-good-new-look-maple-leafs-line-of-auston-matthews-with-tyler-bertuzzi-and-william-nylander-gets-terrible-review-in-win-against-canadiens] "I Think Part Of That Was The Trade Deadline Hanging Over His Head': Maple Leafs' Sheldon Keefe Hopes Timothy Liljegren Struggles Are Behind Him [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/toronto-maple-leafs/latest-news/i-think-part-of-that-was-the-trade-deadline-hanging-over-his-head-maple-leafs-sheldon-keefe-hopes-timothy-liljegren-struggles-are-behind-him] News from THN.com NHL Three Stars: The GM Trio That Shined Brightest at the Deadline [https://thehockeynews.com/news/nhl-three-stars-the-gm-trio-that-shined-brightest-at-the-deadline] Which NHL Teams Are the Ultimate Stanley Cup Contenders After the Trade Deadline? [https://thehockeynews.com/news/which-nhl-teams-are-the-ultimate-stanley-cup-contenders-after-the-trade-deadline] Opinion: Why Golden Knights Got Noah Hanifin for Pennies on the Dollar from Flames [https://thehockeynews.com/news/opinion-why-golden-knights-got-noah-hanifin-for-pennies-on-the-dollar-from-flames]
