DENVER — Friday afternoon, Brandon Carlo was in the Tampa, Fla., sunshine, convinced he was going to remain with the Boston Bruins. The 28-year-0ld defenceman was on the phone with his wife, Mayson, as the clock was inching toward 3:00 p.m. ET and the NHL’s trade deadline was about to come and go.
“I remember making a comment that, ‘Maybe after 3 o’clock, I don’t know if they can even call me anymore,’” Carlo said. “I was wrong there, for sure.”
Minutes later, Bruins general manager Don Sweeney called Carlo, informing him that he had to pack his bags. He wouldn’t be joining the Bruins — the only team Carlo has ever played for — on their trip to Fort Lauderdale to play the Florida Panthers. Instead, he was headed north to Denver to join the Bruins’ rival, the Toronto Maple Leafs.
“It was a tough call to have, for sure,” Carlo acknowledged, his eyes widening as he looked beyond the Maple Leafs dressing room, trying to process one of the more tumultuous days of his NHL career.
After the call, the Colorado Springs native packed his bags to return to his home state. His father, Lenny, dropped his plans to head to Ball Arena and provide a familiar face on the most unfamiliar of days.
“He was giving me some eyes in warmups, like, ‘Wow, this looks weird for you,’” Carlo said.
Weird might be an understatement.
Welcome to a whirlwind and emotional day for the Leafs that saw their two high-profile trade deadline acquisitions — Carlo and centre Scott Laughton — uproot their lives, travel across a country and play an afternoon game for their new team against one of the NHL’s best.
Emotions ran high throughout Saturday’s fast-paced game as the Leafs gave up a 4-2 second-period lead to lose 7-4. All along, it was evident Laughton and Carlo were trying to wrap their heads around the drastic changes in their lives.
“It’s hard to describe,” Laughton said after the game. “It’s different. Weird. I was probably overthinking (the game) in certain situations.”
Friday afternoon, Laughton was at the Philadelphia Flyers’ practice rink. He did not practice with his former team, likely aware he was on the move. He had been linked to the Leafs leading up to the trade deadline. When Laughton received a quick call from Flyers general manager Danny Briere midway through the day to inform him he had been traded to Toronto, he was still taken aback.
“Emotions were high yesterday,” he said. “I grew up in Philly.”
He said his goodbyes to teammates. One Flyers teammate, defenceman Erik Johnson, was particularly upset about Laughton’s getting traded. Laughton still went home to see his wife and quickly pack. Later that afternoon, he was on a flight bound for Denver, unsure when exactly he would return.
Throughout the drive to the airport, the Oakville, Ontario, native grew excited for his family.
“I just thought about my dad being able to drive down to my games. I think that’s a pretty cool feeling,” Laughton said.
By the time he arrived at the airport, he learned Johnson had been traded to the Colorado Avalanche of all teams. That meant Laughton and Johnson would take the same flight out of Philadelphia and share in their bewilderment of what would happen next.
Carlo’s experience was alarmingly similar. He knew his former Bruins teammate Charlie Coyle was also being traded, but they still took different cars to the airport. Yet they ended up on the same flight out of Tampa, toward different teams and new lives.
“We were right next to each other,” Carlo said. “It was comforting, in a way, to be moving on with him as well.”
Both players got in later than preferred before a game day. Each had a brief meeting with the Leafs coaching staff before the game.
And both players took a moment to themselves when they donned the blue-and-white jerseys.
“An amazing feeling, pulling that jersey over my head for the first time,” Laughton said. “I’m very grateful to be here with this special group and help them out.”
Perhaps predictably, it was a mixed bag of results from Laughton and Carlo in their first game with the Leafs.
Carlo was paired with Morgan Rielly. The Leafs hope that after another season of rotating defence partners for the longest-serving Leaf, Carlo’s sturdy defensive approach can help Rielly.
“There’s a lot to be learned from (Rielly),” Carlo said. “And I hope we can create a good partnership.”
Carlo didn’t always look like the player who was usually in the right spots and would make the smart, defensively sound plays as a Bruin against the Leafs. Instead, moments like when he tried to block Avalanche forward Brock Nelson’s shot with his hand directly in front of the goal and crashed into Leafs goaltender Anthony Stolarz in the process stuck out.
The rampant emotions of the day clearly impacted his play.
“A little foreign in the beginning,” Carlo said of his game. He recognized he could have done better staying on the inside of the ice early.
“As it went on, I felt like my gaps got better,” he said.
And Carlo did, sure enough, settle in as the game wore on. He was at his most composed and effective while helping to kill off two penalties in the second period. The Avalanche have one of the better power plays in the league, making Carlo’s stick work and positioning all the more notable. His 22:04 was the highest time on ice of all Leafs players.
Laughton was deployed between Max Domi and Bobby McMann. The hope was that Laughton’s defensive game would provide balance to Domi’s and McMann’s offensive inclinations. The line ended up with 46 percent of the five-on-five expected goals, per Natural Stat Trick.
Laughton was not always noticeable or energetic defensively. The Avalanche’s consistent offensive-zone time against the Leafs can’t and shouldn’t be pinned solely on Laughton. Yet there were still multiple Avalanche scoring opportunities that Laughton could have been more aggressive to defend against. A frustrated-looking Laughton said he has “got a lot better” to show in his game.
“I think I can provide more,” Laughton said.
More chatter among him and his linemates was needed, Laughton said. That’s probably expected. But what Laughton showed after the game was the kind of steely resolve past teammates have lauded him for. He wants to “be part of the solution.”
Neither player played up to their standards, but how could they? Consider the many factors working against them: Their normal game day routines were thrown by the wayside. Their bodies had to adjust to a two-hour time change. They had no opportunity to practice or even have a morning skate. And both were managing the uncertainty that comes with having to live out of a suitcase for the time being.
“They were fine,” Leafs head coach Craig Berube said of his new players. “I know (Laughton) was on for a couple of goals against, but overall, I didn’t mind him. I thought Carlo was good. He did his job. It’s not easy (to jump in) with no practice, but they have been around a long time. It takes a little time to form chemistry and figure everything out.”
It’s fair to assume each will improve as they get more games with the Leafs under their belts. They’ll have to. The Leafs are now winless in their last three games.
And so the window to get their lives and games in order will be short. That’s the reality of being moved at the trade deadline. It’s a reality both players are still grappling with.
After the loss to the Avalanche, Carlo darted to see his family’s familiar faces and hear a few calming words.
And nearby in the bowels of Ball Arena, Laughton held court with new Avalanche players Johnson and Brock Nelson, also traded ahead of the deadline.
As they spoke, all three continually shook their heads, undoubtedly trying to wrap their minds around the strange new world they’d found themselves in.
(Photo of Brandon Carlo and Artturi Lehkonen: Isaiah J. Downing / Imagn Images)
