Tampa Bay Lightning Land 2026 Draft Pick in Darren Raddysh Sign-and-Trade with Leafs

Tampa loses their breakout defensemen but not for nothing

Apr 7, 2026; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Darren Raddysh (43) is seen in a game agains the Ottawa Senators during the first period at Canadian Tire Centre. Mandatory Credit: Keito Newman-Imagn Images / Keito Newman-Imagn Images

The Tampa Bay Lightning's offseason has officially started, and it has begun with the loss of their breakout defensemen, Darren Raddysh. As the Tampa Bay Lightning completed a sign and trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

A defenseman who had a breakout season ranking 4th on the Bolts with 70 points, breaking Tampa's single season goal record for defensemen (22) and securing 48 assists. Raddysh played on a $975,000 contract and now earned himself a huge payday with an 8 year contract with an AAV north of $8 million dollars.

We have acquired a fifth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for defenseman Darren Raddysh.

🗞️ https://t.co/WWfsOKGNWw pic.twitter.com/5cwbjTymqM

— Tampa Bay Lightning (@TBLightning) June 19, 2026

Getting something back for Raddysh is huge for Tampa, as he could have walked for nothing on July 1st, and I didn't expect Tampa to pay the 30-year-old that much money, especially not for that many years.

The Lightning have insisted on getting younger, faster, and more physical with the moves they have made, and extending Raddysh (although the breakout season) doesn't fit that frame, not at that price at least.

Raddysh had this to say on joining the Leafs:

"I couldn't be happier to be joining a great team, a great group of players, and I'm excited to be here for eight years and play for the team I grew up watching."

- Darren Raddysh

Raddysh is a native of Canada and now gets to live out his dream of not only playing in the NHL, but for the team he admired at a young age.

The @MapleLeafs made an early offseason splash with a sign-and-trade for Darren Raddysh, who scored a career-high 22 goals and 70 points in 2025-26.

Here's the NHL EDGE breakdown of what Raddysh can bring to Toronto: https://t.co/js7HwFUu5X pic.twitter.com/NO0VFb9oRm

— NHL Public Relations (@NHLPR) June 19, 2026

Tampa Now Has a Lot of Work to Do

So, while Raddysh earned every bit of this contract it puts Tampa in a tough spot.

Tampa Bay loses a crucial component of last year's defensive unit, leaving them with the difficult task of replacing Raddysh’s production and ice time in a thin free-agent market. Compounding the issue is an aging defensive group Victor Hedman, now 35 --dealt with injuries and personal issues last season-- while Ryan McDonagh is 37.

Tampa then has J.J Moser, Erik Cernak, Maxwell Crozier, Charle-Edouard D'Astous, Emil Lilleberg, and Declan Carlile. The group is weak, and Tampa will have to get better, especially with the concerns around Victor Hedman's future.

Frank Seravalli: Re Darnell Nurse trade request: That's one situation for a team that's out there that could improve...without really having to give up a whole heck of a lot and probably nothing at all from their current roster - Oilers Now (6/15)

— NHL Rumour Report (@NHLRumourReport) June 19, 2026

With Darnell Nurse requesting a trade out of Edmonton, he could become a name to watch for Tampa, but regardless Tampa must improve their defensive room after losing such an impactful player.

So with Tampa wanting to return to the Stanley Cup Finals and break free of their cycle of first round exits, Julien BriseBois now has a lot of work to do.