NHL TRADE: Maple Leafs & Lightning Pull Off Trade For Nick Paul
The Leafs have acquired Nick Paul from the Lightning for Dennis Hildeby and two draft picks pic.twitter.com/9vCditJ6Dg
— TheLeafsNation (@TLNdc) July 1, 2026
With this move, Toronto has acquired another "Leafs killer," adding to the acquisition of Sergei Bobrovsky. Paul is remembered in The Six for his two-goal performance in Game 7 of the 2022 first-round series as the Bolts eliminated the Leafs.
With two recent 20-goal seasons, Paul will be a fine fit on the third line in Toronto, as the center/forward comes with a reasonable $3.15 million cap hit for another three years through 2028-29. He brings size, penalty killing and secondary scoring.
The 31-year-old had an off year in 2025-26 with just seven goals and 15 points in 51 games, but that comes after two consecutive 20-goal, 40-point seasons.
For the Lightning, they get an intriguing 6'7" goalie in Hildeby, who had an excellent 20-game trial in the NHL this past season, posting a .912 save percentage.
