We’re nearing the countdown to the final month before Toronto Maple Leafs training camp and the lineup looks to be coming into a clearer focus. Mitch Marner appears as though he will remain a Leaf as he heads into a contract year, whereas Jani Hakanpaa probably won’t be joining him. There are, of course, training camp battles to be decided, depth roles to be determined and lines to be shuffled, but the foundation of the club seems set as we enter the 2024-25 NHL season.
Now, your feelings on the club’s offseason are likely aligned with how much you felt needed to change after the Maple Leafs fell in Round 1 for the seventh time in the past eight seasons. If you were hoping for major changes, then switching the captaincy and adding some defence and a backup goalie while keeping the “Core Four” intact probably doesn’t thrill you. If, however, you took a more measured approach of hoping that general improvements to areas of weakness could enhance a talented group that hasn’t broken through, then perhaps you are pleased with the front office’s body of work. Maybe you’re just worried about the money and term given to 34-year-old Chris Tanev.
In fact, there are many ways to measure and evaluate general manager Brad Treliving’s offseason efforts. One of the simplest and most straightforward, however, is simply looking at what has come in and gone out since we last saw Toronto bow out in overtime of Game 7 against the Boston Bruins. Let’s break down who’s in and who’s out at each position, and whether the Maple Leafs are any better for it:
Forwards
In: Cedric Pare
Out: Tyler Bertuzzi, Noah Gregor
Treliving’s efforts regarding the forward corps focused on retaining talent rather than adding from outside of the organization. Max Domi was brought back on a four-year, $15 million contract, while Connor Dewar signed for one year at a salary of $1.18 million. Newcomer Cedric Pare could help in the depth department, but the 6-foot-4 centre still has yet to suit up for an NHL game, so he is no sure thing. Alex Nylander is currently only under contract with the Toronto Marlies, but an impressive showing in camp could make him a viable option for the Maple Leafs.
With no disrespect to Ottawa-bound Noah Gregor, it is clearly the loss of Tyler Bertuzzi that will be felt up front. The physical winger took some time to find his place in Toronto, but he ultimately chipped in 21 goals and 43 points in 80 games as a top-six staple. The Maple Leafs probably weren’t in a position to offer him the four years and $22 million that he netted with the Chicago Blackhawks, but that doesn’t change the fact that he still hasn’t been replaced in the lineup.
Losing Bertuzzi (and Gregor) without bringing in an established NHL forward signifies a clear step back at the forward position – for now, anyway. There’s no ready-made replacement for the new Blackhawk in the Maple Leafs’ lineup, but training camp will offer opportunities for players to step forward. Nylander could take the opportunity to build on a modestly successful 2023-24 season that saw him score 11 goals in 23 games with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Likewise, Fraser Minten and Easton Cowan will get the chance to prove they belong at the NHL level.
Just as notable as who Toronto lost this summer is who they didn’t lose. Most critically, Marner is back after an offseason filled with trade speculation. Additionally, Nick Robertson remains a Maple Leaf despite reports of a trade demand and no desire to sign a new contract as a restricted free agent. The club currently has just under $1.3 million in cap space, which could be put towards a new Robertson contract, signing a free agent holdout like Nick Cousins or a little leeway in anticipation of a trade acquisition.
Defencemen
In: Chris Tanev, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Dakota Mermis, Philippe Myers
Out: T.J. Brodie, Mark Giordano, Ilya Lyubushkin, Joel Edmunson, John Klingberg
Quantitatively, five defenders who donned the blue and white last season are out, while only four have joined the organization. By any other measure, however, the blue line has been upgraded this summer.
Quibble with the term or annual average salary if you will, but Tanev adds a top-tier, frontline defender to the mix. He is actually older than the Chicago-bound T.J. Brodie, but Tanev continued to play at a high level between the Calgary Flames and Dallas Stars last season, whereas Brodie showed clear signs of decline. The threat of decline looms for the new Maple Leaf as well, but anything close to his level of play from a year ago would be a welcome boost to the top-four.
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With a fully healthy lineup, Oliver Ekman-Larsson probably doesn’t slot in among the top-four, but that isn’t a major issue when it comes to a player who sat fifth on the depth chart for the Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers last spring. He should offer more – particularly on offence – than Ilya Lyubushkin, Joel Edmundson or any of the outgoing d-men. Dakota Mermis and Philippe Myers will likely start the season with the Marlies, but they could ultimately factor into the team’s defensive plans sometime this year.
For Toronto, the back end didn’t get much younger, but a unit that includes Tanev, Morgan Rielly, Jake McCabe, Simon Benoit and Timothy Liljegren represents an improvement on a group that leaned too heavily on an aging Brodie and Mark Giordano last season. A healthy Hakanpaa would have added to that defensive boost, but it looks increasingly likely that he won’t be making his way to Toronto anytime soon.
Goalies
In: Anthony Stolarz
Out: Ilya Samsonov
The decision to move away from Ilya Samsonov in free agency and add a strong, established No. 2 netminder in Anthony Stolarz serves as a vote of confidence for Joseph Woll. Sure, Stolarz figures to see more action than the 27 games he got backing up Sergei Bobrovsky in Florida last season, but the identity of the club’s No. 1 goalie isn’t nearly as muddled as it would have been had Samsonov returned.
Whether the decision to bring in Stolarz and hand the reins to Woll is the correct one remains to be seen. Stolarz was sensational for the Panthers last season (16-7-2, 2.03 goals-against average, .925 save percentage), but he has never manned the crease for more than 28 games in a season. Samsonov, on the other hand, will make $700,000 less this season and could certainly shake off a disappointing 2023-24 campaign and return to his 2022-23 form (27-10-5, 2.33 GAA, .919 SV%). With Woll coming off of an injury-marred 25-game season of his own (from ‘Brad Treliving: Maple Leafs have to ‘dig into’ Joseph Woll’s history of getting injured,’ Toronto Sun, 05/10/24), the Maple Leafs are taking a risk in going with two goalies who have never played so much as 30 games in an NHL season before.
Maybe Matt Murray can help? The oft-injured veteran was surprisingly re-signed to a one-year, $875,000 contract despite managing just 26 games with the Maple Leafs across two seasons, all of which came in 2022-23 (he played three games for the Marlies late last season). Employing a third-string goalie with two Stanley Cup rings seems like a nice luxury, but the most recent of those Cups came a long seven years ago and Murray’s injury history makes it difficult to know what he might offer this season.
By adding Stolarz and parting ways with Samsonov, the Maple Leafs are banking on 2023-24 being more indicative of what’s to come in the future than 2022-23. If the Cup-winning former Panther can carry his success from last season over to a larger role this season, Treliving will have made a successful goaltending adjustment. But even still, much of Toronto’s success between the pipes will come down to the health and performance of their No. 1 option, Woll.
Given this comparative breakdown, it’s difficult to say with any certainty that the club is (on paper, at least) considerably better or worse than they were at the end of last season. Tanev is likely more impactful than any other incoming or outgoing player, but the Maple Leafs also lost their fair share of players who filled valuable roles. No, this probably hasn’t appeased disgruntled fans seeking more dramatic change, but perhaps management is right to continue to believe in the team’s foundation.
