The Toronto Maple Leafs took care of some business recently when they extended defender Jake McCabe with a new five-year contract worth $4.51 million annually. McCabe, who is 31 years old, was drafted by the Buffalo Sabres in the second round of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft at 44th overall after a strong showing in the NCAA with the University of Wisconsin, where he scored three goals and added nine assists for 12 points through 26 games. McCabe has established himself as a strong shutdown defender who can play big minutes if required, but his extension may impact contract negotiations for their former captain, John Tavares.
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Tavares, who is 34 years old, made headlines this past offseason when the Maple Leafs chose to name Auston Matthews as their new captain, leaving Tavares as the assistant captain after having served as their captain between the 2019-20 and 2023-24 season. Tavares is in the final year of his massive seven-year contract worth $11 million per season and is a pending unrestricted free agent. While nothing indicates he has any interest in signing somewhere else or even testing free agency, he may be forced to take a massive pay cut if he intends to return.
With the McCabe extension included, the Maple Leafs have $23.52 million in projected cap space for the 2024-25 season. That is a lot of money left to sign Tavares, but he isn’t the only player on an expiring contract the team needs to negotiate with. Steven Lorentz and Max Pacioretty are both pending unrestricted free agents and have played well enough to earn new deals next season, but they also have to focus on re-signing Mitchell Marner, as well as their pending restricted free agents, Connor Dewar, Matthew Knies, Pontus Holmberg, Connor Timmins, and Nicholas Robertson. With that in mind, re-signing Tavares might be tough if his asking price is too high.
Marner, McCabe Likely Take Priority Over Tavares
While Tavares brings a lot to the table for the Maple Leafs at both ends of the ice, Marner is younger and has a stronger offensive game. This season, Tavares has 11 points through ten games maintaining over a point-per-game average, while Marner has one goal and 11 assists for 12 points through 11 games. Throughout their respective careers, Marner has scored 195 goals and added 456 assists for 651 points through 587 games which comes out to a 1.11 points-per-game average, while Tavares has scored 461 goals and added 590 assists for 1051 points through 1119 games which comes out to a 0.94 points-per-game average.
McCabe brings value to the table in a different way, providing a strong shutdown game that the Maple Leafs have failed to find consistently out of their lineup over the past several seasons. Extending him now proves the team is committed to keeping their defensive depth strong and proves they’re willing to spend to continue improving their defensive core as they look to win their first Stanley Cup since 1967. They made it clear before the season started with the signings of Chris Tanev and Oliver Ekman-Larsson, that defensive hockey was going to be a key for them moving forward.
With just a $4.51 million average annual value over the next five seasons, McCabe’s price tag allows the Maple Leafs to save some money and pursue free agents if they feel the need to do so. While his price is rather low, it still takes away from the amount of money they have to bring everyone back next season, directly affecting what the team can pay Tavares.
Tavares is still a strong player and will likely continue to play a strong two-way game as a veteran forward for the rest of his career, but he is going to have to take a massive pay cut if he wants to complete his career in Toronto. Marner is likely going to demand around $12 million on his next contract, not giving the team much flexibility moving forward if their pending free agents are all interested in returning. Realistically, Tavares would have to sign for a deal worth no more than $4.5 million annually, giving the Maple Leafs just over $19 million to re-sign the rest of their pending free agents, including Marner. While the McCabe extension may be a good price, it has impacted Tavares’ future with the Maple Leafs.
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