The Toronto Maple Leafs shook up their struggling club, acquiring defenseman Dion Phaneuf from the Calgary Flames in a seven-player deal Sunday and swapping goalies with Anaheim to get J.S. Giguere.
Along with Phaneuf, Toronto received Keith Aulie and Fredrik Sjostrom from Calgary in exchange for Ian White, Matt Stajan, Nick Hagman and Jamal Mayers.
The Maple Leafs also traded goalie Vesa Toskala and Jason Blake to Anaheim for Giguere, who became an expensive backup after the Ducks signed No. 1 goalie Jonas Hiller to a four-year extension Saturday.
The shakeup comes after Toronto's 5-3 loss to the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday night to extend its winless streak to six games. The Leafs (17-28-11, 45 points) are tied with Carolina for last in the Eastern Conference.
``We've got to create tension where there's enough talent on the roster and a high enough battle level that the coach has decisions to make,'' Maple Leafs general manager Brian Burke said. ``Right now he doesn't have decisions to make. It's these guys who got to go on the ice. We're trying to change that. Today is an important part of changing that.
``We're still open for business, we're not done,'' he added.
The 6-foot-3, 214-pound Phaneuf has appeared in 55 games this season with Calgary, with 10 goals and 12 assists with 49 penalty minutes. The Edmonton native is in his fifth NHL season - all with Calgary - after being selected ninth overall in 2003.
Burke called Phaneuf an elite player whom he tried to acquire earlier in the season.
``This guy's a warrior. He's got a cannon for a shot. He plays the game hard ... I want players who play the game hard because they're hard to play against,'' he said.
The 24-year-old made the all-rookie team in 2005-'06 and has twice played in the All-Star Game.
``It was definitely a shock, but I'm very excited about going to Toronto and being a Maple Leaf,'' Phaneuf said.
``It's part of the business.'' he added. ``It's a cliche. If Wayne Gretzky can get traded anyone can get traded. I was very surprised, but on the other hand I'm very excited to be going to the biggest hockey market in the world.''
The trades remove a fair chunk of Toronto's offense, with the departing players accounting for 57 of the Leafs' 149 goals.
``We're just going to have to find other ways to manufacture offense,'' Toronto coach Ron Wilson said.
``In one fell swoop, we've made ourself the youngest team in the league,'' he added. ``Instead of looking back, we're looking forward.''
The acquisition of Giguere will allow the Leafs to give Swedish rookie Jonas Gustavsson more time to learn.
Toskala has a 3.66 goals-against average over 26 games while Gustavsson - who twice has been treated for a heart problem this year - has a 3.03 GAA in his 31 appearances.
Sjostrom, taken 11th overall in the 2001 draft by Phoenix, has one goal and five assists in 56 games this season.
Stajan had 16 goals and 25 assists in 55 games while Hagman had 20 goals and 13 assists in 55 games. White had nine goals and 17 assists in 56 games and Mayers two goals and six assists in 48 games.
Blake had 10 goals and 16 assists in 56 games.
Giguere has a 4-8-5 record with a 3.14 GAA and a .900 save percentage this season. Hiller is 21-15-2 with a 2.75 GAA and a .920 save percentage.
Giguere was drafted 13th overall by the Hartford Whalers in the 1995 draft. He played in the Calgary Flames organization for four seasons before joining the Ducks in 2000.
He captured the 2003 Conn Smythe Trophy before winning the Stanley Cup with the Ducks in 2007.
