The Toronto Maple Leafs are reportedly in the running to bring back defenceman John Klingberg. TSN’s Darren Dreger reported Tuesday that the Leafs were one of the five-to-seven teams that expressed interest in acquiring his services,

The Edmonton Oilers have had a strong 2024-25 campaign and seem poised to make a return to the postseason. They made some strong moves in the offseason to make up for the losses of Dylan Holloway and Philip Broberg by bringing in Vasily Podkolzin and Ty Emberson,

John Klingberg is closing in on an NHL return, and the Maple Leafs, Senators and Oilers are all reportedly interested in the veteran D-man.

John Klingberg back to Toronto? Insider reveals Leafs leading the race for the veteran defenseman, with Oilers and Senators also in the mix.

TSN: The NHL trade deadline is seven weeks away and the Four Nations Face-Off starts in four weeks. Darren Dreger polled each GM and spoke to a number of them, asking how the trade deadline would be affected.

John Klingberg struggled with health in the last couple of NHL seasons, only skating in 17 games last season. After having season-ending hip surgery with the Maple Leafs last season, Klingberg has spent time in Toronto training this season.

Injuries usually pile up as a season progresses, which has been the case for the Maple Leafs — especially on the backend. Veteran defensemen Jake McCabe (upper body) and Jani Hakanpaa (knee) are currently on injured reserve, meaning it wouldn't be shocking if general manager Brad Treliving wanted to add another defender shortly.

Klingberg hasn't played an NHL game since being in the lineup for Toronto vs. the Vancouver Canucks on Nov. 11, 2023.