Samuel Ersson joins Maple Leafs in Joseph Woll trade

The Maple Leafs traded Joseph Woll to the Philadelphia Flyers on Tuesday and brought back Samuel Ersson and Emil Andrae. For Toronto, the move adds a 24-year-old left-shot defenseman after the club spent the offseason looking for help on the blue line.

Toronto lands Emil Andrae

Andrae is the clearest piece in the deal. The Swedish defenseman is 24, stands 5-foot-9 and was the Flyers’ second-round pick, No. 54 overall, in the 2020 NHL Draft.

He also arrives with a recent workload Toronto can point to. In the 2025-26 season, Andrae played 61 NHL games, his most in a season, and finished with 13 points, including two goals and 11 assists.

Andrae’s 2025-26 workload

His numbers go beyond scoring. Andrae posted a plus-15 rating, blocked 58 shots and delivered 68 hits while averaging 15 minutes and 20 seconds of ice time.

That was a step up from 2024-25, when he averaged 17 minutes and 21 seconds of ice time in 42 games. Toronto sought him out as part of the trade, a sign the club valued the season he just put together more than a short-term goalie swap.

Flyers swap Woll for Ersson

Ersson went to Toronto as part of the return, giving the Maple Leafs another goalie while Woll headed to Philadelphia. Toronto likely had multiple destinations willing to take a goalie, but the deal it completed centered on landing Andrae as a young piece on defense.

That is the part Toronto will judge first: a 24-year-old left-shot defender with 61 games of recent NHL experience, and the chance for a larger role if he fits quickly into the lineup. Woll is gone, Ersson is in, and the blue line got the player Toronto wanted most.