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Extension Talks Quiet Between Maple Leafs, Timothy Liljegren

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The Maple Leafs don’t have much in the way of pending restricted free agents to worry about aside from blue liner Timothy Liljegren. While he averaged a career-high 19:40 per game last season and produced at a respectable 34-point pace, he was one of many Leafs that struggled in postseason play and posted the worst even-strength possession metrics of his young career.

Injuries plugged up his regular season, too, limiting him to 55 appearances. He missed weeks with an ankle injury in the first half of the season and missed a significant chunk of the stretch run with an upper-body injury. It’s becoming an unfortunately common theme for the 2017 first-round pick, who’s yet to hit 70 games in a season.

That makes his future in the organization and, even if he stays, his contract discussions this summer quite complicated. To that end, The Athletic’s Joshua Kloke reports Wednesday that “there hasn’t been much dialogue between the Leafs and Liljegren’s camp” regarding a new deal for the RFA.

Whether that means Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving is examining trading his signing rights elsewhere remains to be seen. At the very least, it’s clear that Toronto prefers to reserve its early-offseason cap flexibility for more aggressively upgrading their defense, goaltending and depth scoring during free agency, as well as the increasingly small likelihood of trading superstar winger Mitch Marner elsewhere. Put simply, Liljegren doesn’t seem to be a priority for the Leafs’ front office, likely a telling sign of the role they envision him playing next season and beyond.

No matter what they do with Liljegren, they’re in a bit of a tough spot. His gaffes are clear, and he often seems visibly indecisive or uncomfortable playing the puck in his own zone under pressure – a concern that’s plagued a handful of Toronto defensemen throughout the Auston Matthews era.

But his ability to produce offense took major strides this season in an increased role, and the Leafs have consistently had the better share of possession quality at even strength with Liljegren on the ice. He’s logged a career 54.6 xGF%, including a 55.1% mark this season, although his ability to control shot attempts outright dipped this season down below 50% for the first time since his brief initial NHL showing five years ago.

His deal shouldn’t cost too much or require a lengthy term offering, and his being arbitration-eligible this summer after missing significant time with injuries likely isn’t a major concern either. But it would likely require a $2MM-$3MM cap hit to get across the finish line, a decent chunk of change for a team that will take every inch of available cap space they have this summer to make a deep playoff run.

Offseason Checklist: Toronto Maple Leafs

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The offseason has arrived for all but the two teams who are still taking part in the playoffs.  For the rest, it’s time to examine what they will need to accomplish over the coming months.  Next up is a look at Toronto.

An offseason of low-risk, short-term signings for new general manager Brad Treliving paid some dividends for Toronto. Unfortunately, a lack of impact adds at the trade deadline and injuries to star forwards Auston Matthews and William Nylander contributed to yet another first-round playoff loss to the Bruins. Now, a sharp increase in the salary cap is coming at the best possible time for the Leafs, who have a significant amount of roster and spending flexibility available for the first time in a while. It’s up to Treliving to not waste it.

Defense, Defense, Defense

Did we say defense? The Leafs only have three everyday defenders signed next season. Two of them, Simon Benoit and Jake McCabe, had competent showings in shutdown roles last season (especially the latter) but struggled to move the puck up the ice. The other, longtime fixture Morgan Rielly, remains a high-end offensive blue liner but has documented defensive weaknesses that make it increasingly difficult to justify playing him nearly 24 minutes per game.

Nearly all of their pending UFAs on defense, namely T.J. Brodie, aren’t expected to back. Their lone restricted free agent, Timothy Liljegren, is far from a sure bet either, and his signing rights could be used as trade bait this summer.

That leaves plenty of money and roster space for turnover, especially on the right side. All of Benoit, McCabe and Rielly are lefties, although McCabe is comfortable playing his off-side. In any event, Treliving is looking for at least two marquee right-shot blue liners on the open market that can comfortably shoulder top-four minutes.

Two options the Leafs have already been connected to as July 1 draws closer are Brett Pesce and Sean Walker. Both have historically been positive possession forces. While Pesce is coming off a down year offensively, the longtime Hurricane has a solid history of tossing up 20-plus assists per season. Walker was an absolute monster at getting the puck on net this year, though, managing 150 shots on goal (32nd among NHL defenders) despite averaging fewer than 20 minutes per game. Both are logical fits and upgrades over the rotating cast of Brodie, Joel Edmundson, Mark Giordano and Ilya Lyubushkin that was utilized down the stretch and in the postseason.

The Marner Conundrum

Despite producing over a point per game in six straight seasons, Marner immediately found himself in trade speculation after being limited to just one goal and two assists in seven playoff games. Like Matthews and Nylander, Marner likely wasn’t playing at 100 percent after sustaining a high ankle sprain in a regular-season game against the Bruins weeks earlier. But he’s entering the final season of his contract, is headed toward unrestricted free agency, and there’s little appetite to work on an extension on July 1 with another playoff disappointment fresh on everyone’s minds.

Reporting indicates the Leafs haven’t directly approached Marner about waiving his no-move clause, and the 27-year-old has made it clear he wants to stay in his hometown. They likely won’t do so until receiving a serious trade offer, and the likelihood of one of those coming through correlates directly with how aggressively Treliving shops him this summer, if at all.

The question for a Maple Leafs team in win-now mode is simple. Is the potential value of reallocating Marner’s $10.9MM cap hit next season greater than what he’ll give you on the ice? What he is is a consistent 100-point threat (if healthy) who averages over 21 minutes per game and finds himself consistently earning outside Selke Trophy consideration. Playoff disappointment aside, he’s a superstar.

It’s a tough question to answer, but one Treliving and his staff need to in short order.

Complement Woll

Perhaps the greatest certainty about the Leafs’ summer is that Ilya Samsonov will find a new home in unrestricted free agency. That leaves the up-and-coming Joseph Woll as the sole keeper of the crease for now, but they’ll need to find a solid complementary piece to give them better overall goaltending than last season’s roller-coaster ride.

Shelling out for a high-priced starter will be a controversial decision. Woll is still only 25, had a solid regular season and was excellent in brief playoff action this year before getting injured (.964 SV%, 0.86 GAA). He should likely be trusted for around 40 starts – which means the assets needed to acquire a Jacob Markström or Juuse Saros could wisely be repurposed elsewhere.

Unfortunately, the list of established true tandem options is incredibly small. They’ve been connected to Laurent Brossoit, who’s headed to UFA status next month. He’s had great numbers over the past two seasons, logging a .927 SV% through stops in Vegas and Winnipeg, but has never started more than 22 games in a season. He’s an upgrade on Samsonov over smaller stints, but questions will remain about how well he can handle an extended workload.

Find Cost-Effective Forward Depth

The Leafs had no problem putting the puck in the net last year, at least in the regular season. Their 303 goals were second in the league, influenced by a combined 109 snipes from Matthews and Nylander. But as it stands, no player projected in their bottom six next season had more than 0.5 points per game last year, a difficult stat to acquiesce for a team with championship aspirations.

One thing that would be a major boost is pushing shutdown pivot David Kämpf squarely into a fourth-line role. It’s not the most attractive option for a player with a $2.4MM cap hit, but averaging north of 13 minutes per game isn’t feasible for a player who provides as little offense as he does. He’s certainly a capable fourth-line defensive center on a Cup winner, but right now, they’re asking too much. Thus, at least one middle-six option is needed to help create a domino effect and spread out some scoring depth, plus a few more if they do indeed move on from Marner.

A spot can hopefully be filled by either Easton Cowan or Fraser Minten, their two top forward prospects, the former of whom is coming off an electric OHL postseason performance that earned him playoff MVP honors. After 96 points in 54 regular-season games and 34 points in 18 playoff games, Cowan is a solid bet for at least a nine-game trial out of the gate, but they need insurance options in the semi-likely event neither is ready to be an everyday top-nine force.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Maple Leafs Linked To Laurent Brossoit

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The Maple Leafs and netminder Laurent Brossoit will have mutual interest in a deal should he reach unrestricted free agency on July 1, The Athletic’s James Mirtle reports.

Brossoit, 31, is likely headed to market in search of a bigger role after making 22 starts last season behind Connor Hellebuyck with the Jets. He’s coming off a great season in his limited relief action, putting up a .927 SV%, 2.00 GAA and three shutouts, but without any history in a tandem role, he won’t command too much cash.

Those 22 starts were remarkably a career-high for the veteran netminder, who just completed his 10th NHL season. His career numbers (.911 SV%, 2.64 GAA) rival the other top options slated for the open market, like Anthony Stolarz and Cam Talbot, and he’s arguably been the best pure backup in the league over the past 18 months.

A member of the Cup-winning Golden Knights last season, Brossoit started the year on the injured list and was sent down to the minors upon his return to health in November. But he worked his way back to the Vegas roster later in the year, posting a .927 SV% in 10 starts and one relief appearance. That earned him the start in Game 1 of their postseason run against the Jets, and while an injury eventually forced him out of the crease and opened the door for Adin Hill, he’d re-established himself as a major-league talent.

As Mirtle posits, a short-term deal in the neighborhood of $3MM annually is a realistic bet for Brossoit. It’s similar to what Stolarz, who’s coming off a .925 SV% in 27 appearances behind Sergei Bobrovsky in Florida, should garner as well.

He would be Toronto’s replacement for Ilya Samsonov, who will hit free agency next month and isn’t expected back. He’d been serviceable but inconsistent in tandem action for them over the past two seasons, although he did backstop them to their first playoff series win of the Auston Matthews era against the Lightning in the first round in 2023.

In Toronto, Brossoit would nearly guarantee himself a new career-high in starts, assuming he avoids injuries. He’d serve in a tandem role with the younger Joseph Woll, who is slated to eventually take over as the Leafs’ long-term starter. Injuries limited him to 25 games last year, posting a respectable .907 SV%, but he’s also been excellent in brief playoff action over the last two seasons.

Domi: Agent Has Been Talking Contract With Brad Treliving

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Maple Leafs forward Max Domi told Lance Hornby of the Toronto Sun that he knows his agent Judd Moldaver has been in discussions with GM Brad Treliving but declined to comment on the status of negotiations.  Domi signed a one-year, $3MM deal with Toronto last summer but saw his goal total drop from 20 a year ago to just nine this season.  However, his 38 assists were his best since the 2018-19 campaign.  That could still put him in line for a raise this summer on a multi-year agreement.  Toronto has a little less than $19MM in cap room per CapFriendly but they have multiple key pieces to try to sign into that space which could make fitting in a raise for Domi a little harder.

East Notes: Marner, Red Wings, Guentzel

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Jonas Siegel of The Athletic speculates what a potential Mitch Marner trade might look like for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Siegel points to several recent trades for Pierre-Luc Dubois and Dougie Hamilton as templates the Maple Leafs could use to get a return package for the 27-year-old Marner. Both of those trades brought young NHL-ready talent back to their respective teams, which is something that Toronto would likely covet given their competitive window.

Siegel points to the Carolina Hurricanes and Tampa Bay Lightning as teams that the Maple Leafs could potentially do business with. Carolina could dangle Seth Jarvis, Andrei Svechnikov, and Martin Necas as potential centerpieces of a return for Marner, while Tampa Bay could use Mikhail Sergachev or Brandon Hagel.

Siegel does concede that any potential Marner trade could be nixed by his no-movement clause and might be a difficult trade for Toronto to win. However, with Marner’s pending free agency status, it may be something they need to explore.

In other Eastern Conference notes:

  • Max Bultman of The Athletic wonders if the Detroit Red Wings might be players in the goaltending market this summer, specifically the trade market where several high-end starters are available. Bultman writes that the Red Wings’ general manager isn’t revealing much but adds that Ville Husso’s health could nudge the Red Wings into the trade market and would be the quickest way to improve the team’s overall defense which was something that was an Achilles heel last season. Detroit missed the playoffs by the smallest of margins and adding a top-tier netminder might be the thing that gets them back into the playoffs for the first time since 2016. The team has backup Alex Lyon signed next year to a very reasonable $900K, but likely can’t count on him to duplicate his 44-game workload from this past season.
  • Elliotte Friedman reported today on his 32 Thoughts podcast that the rights to Hurricanes forward Jake Guentzel are available for a mid-round pick. Friedman tells his audience that Carolina has made it known to other teams that the 29-year-old’s signing rights are available and adds that there will be a ton of interest. It was reported earlier this week that Guentzel was likely to test free agency and it makes sense for the Hurricanes to pivot and try to recoup an asset after dealing Michael Bunting, three prospects, and a second-round pick to Pittsburgh at the trade deadline to acquire Guentzel.

Maple Leafs, Predators Linked To Brett Pesce

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Expect the Maple Leafs and Predators to be two of the top suitors for Hurricanes defenseman Brett Pesce if he hits the open market next month, The Fourth Period’s David Pagnotta reports.

The Hurricanes are still attempting to extend Pesce after general manager Don Waddell resigned last month, but they haven’t been close to a deal since discussions started last summer. In fact, most believed he would be traded last summer to avoid losing him for nothing at the end of this season, but they took him off the trade block during training camp and decided to continue negotiations.

Recent reports around Pesce’s pending free agency suggest more of the same. Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman believed the Canes were holding firm at an offer of around $5MM annually on a five-year deal that Pesce wasn’t willing to accept.

Nashville was one of the teams interested in acquiring him when he was made available for trade last summer, Pagnotta notes, so it’s of no surprise to see them linked to Pesce again. They’re looking for a top-four defender to replace Ryan McDonagh, whom they traded back to the Lightning last month after acquiring him from Tampa in the 2022 offseason.

Pesce would be a similar stylistic fit, but unlike McDonagh, he’s a right-shot. That gives him a greater potential of sliding upward in the lineup to play alongside captain Roman Josi, also a left-shot, on the team’s top pairing.

He’s used to heavy usage, averaging over 20 minutes per game for eight straight seasons. The 29-year-old is coming off a down year offensively with only three goals and 13 points in 70 games, but his career averages suggest the two-way blue-liner is more of a 25-to-30-point producer over a full season.

The New York native has earned sparse Norris consideration in the past, receiving votes in 2018 and 2020. His possession numbers are still strong, controlling 54.4% of shot attempts at even strength throughout his career. He’s also had an expected goals share north of 50% for the past four years, per Hockey Reference.

It’s no surprise to see Toronto engaged in Pesce rumors, either. They’ll be in on nearly all of the top defensemen on this summer’s UFA market, but especially right-shots. Ideally, second-year GM Brad Treliving is looking for a stable partner for top offensive blue liner Morgan Rielly, who’s had a rotating cast of shutdown partners over the past few seasons.

The Leafs lack puck-movers outside of Rielly among their defense corps, and while it’s not a hallmark of Pesce’s game, he would be a small upgrade over Jake McCabe and the outgoing T.J. Brodie in that regard. He’s eclipsed 20 assists four times in his career, including a career-high 25 helpers in 2022-23.

Evolving Hockey’s contract projections peg Pesce to land a six-year, $5.5MM AAV deal on the open market, slightly lengthier and richer than his rumored extension offer in Carolina. That would be feasible for both the Leafs and Preds, who enter the offseason with a decent amount of salary cap flexibility.

Maple Leafs Add Lane Lambert To Coaching Staff

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The Maple Leafs announced Wednesday that Lane Lambert has been added to incoming head coach Craig Berube’s staff as an associate. He’ll be replacing assistant Dean Chynoweth, who the team said won’t return next season.

TSN’s Darren Dreger reported earlier this week that Lambert would likely join Berube’s bench in Toronto. The 59-year-old spent parts of the last two seasons as the Islanders’ head coach before being fired in January. He’s long been a disciple of Barry Trotz, serving under him as an assistant or associate for the better part of the last 15 years during his coaching tenures with the Capitals, Isles and Preds, but that trend is officially broken with today’s move.

The Leafs didn’t specify Lambert’s responsibilities as an associate. He held the title under Trotz in New York for four seasons before being promoted to head coach after his departure in 2022. The nomenclature implies that he won’t be a direct replacement for Chynoweth in terms of job responsibilities. Chynoweth, 55, had been with the club for the past three seasons.

Berube still needs to finalize the rest of his staff. There’s already one opening created by former assistant Manny Malhotra, who departed the organization last month to take a minor-league head coaching job with the Canucks. The future of assistant coach Guy Boucher, who was in charge of their power play with a 4.8% success rate in their first-round loss to the Bruins, is also in question. Former Flames assistant Marc Savard, who parted ways with the club last month, is a strongly speculated candidate to join Berube’s staff after previously working with him during his days as head coach of the Blues.

Maple Leafs Notes: Lambert, Edmundson, Lyubushkin

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Keep an eye on Lane Lambert as a name to join the Maple Leafs’ bench this offseason. The former Islanders bench boss is a candidate to land a role on new head coach Craig Berube’s staff in Toronto, Darren Dreger of TSN said Monday morning.

The Leafs have at least one vacancy to fill after assistant coach Manny Malhotra left to take a head coaching job with the Canucks’ AHL affiliate in Abbotsford. There’s a chance Berube could opt to make some other changes to the staff, including assistants Guy Boucher and Dean Chynoweth, later on. Their fourth assistant, Mike Van Ryn, is a logical choice to stay after working under Berube previously in St. Louis.

Lambert, 59, lasted about a year and a half during his first try as an NHL bench boss on Long Island. The team lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Hurricanes in his first season behind the bench, and he was fired in January after going 19-15-11 to start 2023-24. He and Berube haven’t been on the same staff in their coaching careers.

He joins former Blues and Flames assistant Marc Savard, who parted ways with Calgary last month, as names linked to the Leafs’ bench already this offseason.

Elsewhere in Leafland:

  • Toronto has expressed interest in retaining trade pickup Joel Edmundson, but the pending unrestricted free-agent defenseman seems intent on testing the market next month, reports David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period. The 30-year-old hasn’t ruled out a return to the Leafs but wants to see what else is out there. He struggled with injuries after being picked up from the Capitals the day before the deadline, going without a point and logging a +3 rating in nine regular-season games. He had a decent showing in postseason play, averaging 18:40 in their seven-game loss to the Bruins while adding an assist and a -1 rating. The aging blue liner won a Stanley Cup with Berube as a member of the Blues in 2019.
  • The Leafs appear less likely to retain another depth defenseman, Ilya Lyubushkin, with Pagnotta reporting extension discussions haven’t started with free agency less than a month away. General manager Brad Treliving sent a third-round pick to the Ducks to bring the Russian blue-liner back for his second stint in Toronto, and he was one of their better defensemen in the postseason with three assists and a +4 rating against Boston while riding shotgun alongside Morgan Rielly on their top pairing. The shutdown defender totaled eight assists and a -11 rating in 74 games split between Anaheim and Toronto this season.

Maple Leafs Open Contract Talks With Tyler Bertuzzi

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Winger Tyler Bertuzzi is one of many pending unrestricted free agents for the Maple Leafs and is also one of their more prominent ones.  It had been suggested previously that there was mutual interest in a contract extension and it appears those talks are now underway, according to David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period (Twitter link).  He added that it’s way too early in the process to determine if the two sides might be able to work out a new deal.

Last summer was an interesting one for the 29-year-old.  Even though he was coming off a down year, Bertuzzi was one of the better unrestricted free agents in last year’s class, landing in the top ten in our annual rankings.  That appeared to have him set to receive a multi-year agreement (if not a long-term one) and a raise on the $4.75MM AAV he had been playing on.

However, the market he was hoping for never materialized.  Rather than accept a multi-year deal at a lower rate, he instead pivoted on the second day of free agency, inking a one-year, $5.5MM pact with Toronto.  It looked like his hope was that a key role on a Maple Leafs team that had a strong offensive core could help better position himself to land a long-term agreement on the open market this time around.

Things didn’t go quite as planned, however.  Bertuzzi got off to a slow start, notching just nine points in his first 27 games despite holding down a spot in the top six for most of that time.  He was able to rebound in the second half, however, finishing up with 21 goals and 20 assists in 80 games before tying for the team lead in playoff points with four.

Bertuzzi is only two years removed from a 30-goal season when he had 30 tallies and 32 assists in 68 games during the 2021-22 season.  He also has two other 21-goal campaigns under his belt so there is a reasonable track record of offensive success.

Having said that, the fact he wasn’t able to get back to that 30-goal mark (instead staying closer to his career averages) won’t help his chances of landing a raise and a long-term pact.  If Bertuzzi wants some job security in the form of a multi-year agreement, he’s likely going to have to take at least a small discount on the salary side.

Toronto has a little more than $18MM in cap room this summer, per CapFriendly.  However, they have to sign a few forwards, several defensemen, and a goalie with that money so while there is some flexibility to make a big signing if they want, they also need to spread that money around.  They have next month to figure out if a new deal for Bertuzzi fits in with how they want to allocate their remaining cap room.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Free Agent Focus: Toronto Maple Leafs

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Free agency is now just a month away and teams are looking ahead to when it opens.  There will be several impact players set to hit the open market in July while many teams have key restricted free agents to re-sign as well.  We continue our look around the NHL with an overview of the free agent situation for the Maple Leafs.

Key Restricted Free Agents

D Timothy Liljegren – Liljegren would best be served to play on a team’s third pairing but given the lack of right-handed defenseman for the Maple Leafs this season he was thrust into second-pairing duty quite often and averaged nearly 20 minutes of ice time per game. That number dwindled to just 17 minutes per game in the playoffs as Liljegren appeared to lose the trust of former Toronto head coach Sheldon Keefe. Liljegren draws a lot of criticism for his lack of detail with the puck on his stick as evidenced by his giveaway numbers (40 giveaways in 55 games), but he plays in all situations and is a good offensive producer on the powerplay. The 25-year-old will be looking for a sizeable raise on his previous $1.4MM AAV and should easily double that figure on a multi-year agreement.

F Nicholas Robertson – Robertson was a victim of Toronto’s cap crunch last season on more than one occasion and found himself playing in the AHL despite being one of the Maple Leafs’ better offensive producers in the bottom six. The 22-year-old registered 14 goals and 13 assists in 56 games despite playing just 11:23 a game and could be in line to see time in the top six next season if the Maple Leafs are unable to slide another high-priced forward into the lineup. Robertson is a good forechecker despite being on the small side at just 5’9” and 178 pounds, and he is also a strong play driver who can create scoring opportunities off the rush. Robertson will be looking at a bridge deal this summer and could come in at a figure around $1.5MM per season.

Other RFAs: F Connor Dewar, F Max Ellis, F Noah Gregor, D Maxime Lajoie, G Keith Petruzzelli, F Alex Steeves

Key Unrestricted Free Agents

F Tyler Bertuzzi – Bertuzzi had some struggles adjusting to life with the Maple Leafs and was much better in the second half of the season. The Sudbury, Ontario native finished with 21 goals and 22 assists in 80 games while providing solid work in the dirty areas of the ice-extending shifts along the boards and going to the net for rebounds. The 29-year-old settled for a one-year $5.5MM contract last summer and will be looking for term this time around. While he has shown that he can provide better than secondary scoring and is a decent skater with a physical element to his game, it’s hard to imagine him receiving a raise on a multi-year deal, but he could receive a similar AAV on his next deal. It’s also difficult to see him re-signing in Toronto given their laundry list of needs and pending salary cap crunch.

D T.J. Brodie – It’s hard to project what T.J. Brodie’s next contract will look like given that last season was a tale of two wildly different trajectories. Brodie was very good in the first half of the season, but appeared to lose a step down the stretch and only found his way into one playoff game for the Maple Leafs. During the regular season, the 33-year-old tallied a goal and 25 assists in 80 games while playing almost 22 minutes a night, but his finish to the year mirrored the previous season where his play also dipped, largely due to injury. Given the fact that the Chatham, Ontario native has lost some foot speed and has shown signs of wearing down the last couple of years, it’s hard to envision him being back with Toronto or topping his previous $5MM AAV. Brodie is still a capable third-pairing NHL defenseman and will likely get a multi-year deal this summer.

F Max Domi – Domi was another new addition to the Maple Leafs who struggled to fit in this past season. He started the year on Toronto’s third line but worked his way into the top six as the season inched on and injuries began to pile up. The 29-year-old fit in well with the Maple Leafs’ elite scorers as his quick pace and ability to distribute the puck allowed him to give Toronto’s scorers some good looks. Domi seems like the likeliest to return to Toronto as he has expressed an interest in doing so and figures to fit in the Maple Leafs’ salary cap structure. Domi posted nine goals and 38 assists last season in 80 games while playing up and down the lineup and should be in line for a multi-year deal above $4MM per season.

G Ilya Samsonov – Samsonov did not provide the Maple Leafs with consistent NHL goaltending this season and was barely able to hold onto an NHL spot. However, he was a much different goaltender in the second half of the year and finished the season sporting a 23-7-8 record with a 3.13 goals-against average and an .890 save percentage. Despite his better results in the backend of the season, Samsonov was still prone to giving up bad goals and had a hard time tracking pucks in traffic. He is simply not a goaltender the Maple Leafs can count on as a number-one netminder and will find an NHL job elsewhere this summer on a short-term deal.

Other UFAs: F Kyle Clifford, D Joel Edmundson, C Dylan Gambrell, D Mark Giordano, G Martin Jones, D John Klingberg, D Ilya Lyubushkin, G Matt Murray

Projected Cap Space

The Maple Leafs project to enter the offseason with roughly $18.5MM in available cap space which looks like a sizeable amount on paper given that the team’s top stars are already locked into contracts for next season. However, Toronto has a big hole to fill in their top-6 forward group as well as two holes in the top-4 of their defensive unit (one of which could be filled by Liljegren). The Maple Leafs also need to address their goaltending situation which has been a letdown in many of their early playoff exits. All of that will take up most of the remaining cap space available and could make it difficult to add depth to the bottom of Toronto’s lineup, which has been another area of concern for a top-heavy lineup. The team will also have to factor in several pending extensions to forwards John Tavares and Mitch Marner as they are both a year away from unrestricted free agency and have to consider Matthew Knies and Joseph Woll who will be restricted free agents next summer as well.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.  Contract information courtesy of CapFriendly.

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