'His Calling Card Is Defending': Maple Leafs' Newest Defense Acquisition Cade Webber Continues to Hit Milestones with Boston University

The Maple Leafs acquired Webber on Mar. 7 from the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for their sixth-round pick in the 2026 NHL draft. Listed at 6-foot-7 and weighing 210 pounds, Webber was picked by the Hurricanes in the fourth round (99th) overall of the 2019 NHL draft.

"Cade is a guy that our guys have been tracking a lot. Not just this year, but even prior to that," Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving said following the trade deadline on Friday. "He's a long defender. I know people might look at his stat line. He's a defense-first guy. He's a big body. He moves well, moves the puck well. But his calling card is defending, penalty killing, those types of things. 

"He's a guy who's a little bit further along in terms of his development. Chris Bourque (Toronto's College Free Agent Scout) [did] a lot of work on this. This is a guy he's tracked hard. When the opportunity came to acquire him, we did."

Along with the two selections he received this week, Webber broke the NCAA's division one men's hockey blocked shots record, which was 113. He broke the record on Mar. 8 and is now up to 118 blocked shots on the season, 52 ahead of the next player on his team.

Webber has six assists in 32 games this season with a Boston University team that's second in the NCAA Hockey East with 57 points, only behind Boston College who has 61.

They're a team that both Webber and the Maple Leafs hope can go on a long run in the playoffs before the organization looks to sign the defenseman this summer.

"He's with a real good team and hopefully they go on a long run at BU," Treliving said, "and then hopefully we can get him signed after."