NHL insider Chris Johnston heaps praises upon $22,565,510 Maple Leafs' D-man amid Morgan Rielly trade speculations

NHL insider Chris Johnston recently spoke about the importance of Jake McCabe to the Toronto Maple Leafs. While trade rumors swirl around Morgan Rielly, Johnston talked about McCabe’s strong play and steady presence on the team’s blue line.

"Tough to say where it'll go with what they're going to do trade-wise," Johnston said on Tuesday, via 'First Up.' "I don't have a good answer, you know, for what's going on with Riley this year. Obviously, players have ups and downs. It's possible, you know, maybe he's nursing some type of injury."

McCabe missed four games earlier this season with an upper-body injury after a fight. The Maple Leafs lost three of those four games, showing how much they rely on him. Johnston called McCabe a "defensive stopper" who doesn’t always get enough credit for his role.

"Jake McCabe is, to me, sort of doesn't get a lot of love, you know, he bit more of a defensive stopper," Johnston said.

McCabe who signed a five-year $22,565,510 contract in October and has one goal, 12 assists and 13 points with a +16 rating. He averages 21 minutes of ice time and has been particularly effective in wins, with nine points and a +22 rating.

Johnston praised the Maple Leafs for signing McCabe early in the season, saying that it brought stability to the defense. He noted that McCabe’s absence showed how important he is to the team.

"I feel like when, when Leafs had to play a couple stretches without McCabe this year, it's drawn through what a hole that was, and (they) did a nice job locking him up early in the season because I'd have a little more concern about the blue line moving forward, even beyond this year, if there was some question about where he was going to be," Johnston said.

As the March 7 trade deadline approaches, Johnston added that the Leafs may look to add another defenseman.

Toronto Maple Leafs won 5-3 against the Lightning with an early lead

The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-3 on Monday at Scotiabank Arena. Jake McCabb played 22:45 minutes with a rating of +1.

Auston Matthews scored first at 4:06 of the opening period and William Nylander made it 2-0 at 13:45 of the second period. Nick Paul cut the lead to 2-1 at 16:07 before Matthew Knies scored at 19:37 to make it 3-1.

Raddysh brought the Lightning closer at 8:07 of the third; however, Knies scored again on a rebound at 10:09. Paul’s power-play goal at 12:05 made it 4-3 before Mitch Marner sealed the win with an empty-net goal.