Offer sheets are a very rare thing in the NHL. Any team with restricted free agents (RFAs) is at risk of them, though few are ever actually forced to deal with them. Many are in the belief that it is somewhat of an unwritten rule between general managers (GMs) to avoid them. The odd ones that do get signed have caused bad blood between GMs in the past.
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The St. Louis Blues don’t seem to mind, however, as they chose to sign two of the Edmonton Oilers RFAs, Philip Broberg and Dylan Holloway, to two-year deals on Tuesday (Aug. 13). Oilers management has until this coming Tuesday (Aug. 20) to match the offers. If they don’t, they will receive a second-round pick for Broberg and a third-round pick for Holloway. Those returns would be very underwhelming for the Oilers, and well worth it for the Blues, as both players appear to have bright NHL futures ahead.
While it remains to be seen, these recent signings by the Blues could result in other GMs around the league considering offer sheets of their own. While many RFAs have already been locked up by their respective teams, there is one in particular on the Toronto Maple Leafs who could be had, and may be quite open to joining another organization.
Robertson Looking for Change of Scenery
Shortly after the 2023-24 season had concluded, several reports surfaced that Nick Robertson had requested a trade out of Toronto. The 2019 second-round pick has a ridiculously high skill level but has yet to get a real opportunity with the Maple Leafs roster.
The Maple Leafs don’t seem too keen on moving Robertson, who they certainly realize themselves has a bright future in the NHL. GM Brad Treliving even did his best to make it clear to reporters that he will have a much bigger opportunity moving forward. Perhaps that’s true with a new head coach in Craig Berube, but until it actually happens, it’s safe to assume Robertson remains hesitant about staying.
There are many teams around the league, particularly those in a rebuild with plenty of cap space, who should strongly be considering sending an offer sheet Robertson’s way. He’s just 12 days older than Holloway and has 17 goals and 34 points through 87 career games. Holloway, who was offered a two-year deal with a $2.29 million cap hit, has nine goals and 18 points through 89 games.
While Robertson would have to agree to any offer sheet sent his way, the fact that he requested a trade makes it seem likely that he is willing to do so. Opportunities to play in a top-six role in Toronto that features players like Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner, William Nylander, John Tavares, Matthew Knies, and Max Domi don’t seem likely. Having a role on the power play, even lesser.
That wouldn’t be the case for many rebuilding teams around the league, who could give Robertson both of those opportunities to prove that he has what it takes to become a scoring forward at the NHL level. There is a chance he doesn’t pan out, but the reward far outweighs the risk in this situation.
While the Maple Leafs aren’t in as big of cap trouble as the Oilers, their situation is far from ideal. They have roughly $875,000 in cap space, meaning that if Robertson were to sign an offer sheet, Treliving would be forced to make a change to his roster in order to keep him around.
Maple Leafs Need to Act Fast
Robertson has proven throughout his time in the American Hockey League (AHL), as well as throughout his exceptional junior hockey career, that he has great offensive abilities. His 14 goals and 27 points through 56 games in a limited NHL role last season are far from shabby, either.
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While no one has acted yet, Robertson is a prime candidate to be signed to an offer sheet in the near future. The Maple Leafs, by all accounts, want to keep him around, meaning that Treliving will need to do his best to convince the young forward to sign an extension. If not, the organization could find themselves in trouble.
