The position that is expected to see the greatest amount of change for the Toronto Maple Leafs over the summer is their defense, with Cody Franson and Jake Gardiner being restricted free agents, veteran Paul Ranger not expected to return and continuing rumors that the club may entertain trading team captain Dion Phaneuf.
According to TSN’s Darren Dreger, Leafs GM Dave Nonis is interested in adding a veteran presence to one of the youngest clubs in the NHL and may be interested in former Stanley Cup winner and Olympic champion blueliner Dan Boyle.
San Jose GM Doug Wilson announced that his club would not re-sign the 37-year-old blueliner last month after the Sharks were eliminated by the LA Kings in the first round and traded his exclusive negotiating rights to the New York Islanders for a mid-round draft pick last week.
Dreger indicates that there is a decent chance that Boyle would sign with the Islanders, but that is assuming they would pay him significantly more than teams further along in their development who are looking to add to their blueline like the Leafs or Detroit Red Wings.
Isles GM Garth Snow made a similar preemptive move with free-agent-to-be Christian Ehrhoff three years ago, acquiring his rights from the Vancouver Canucks, but were unable to agree on a contract and traded his rights to Buffalo, who signed the German defenseman to a 10-year, $40 Million deal.
If Boyle decides he wants to test the open market or play for a team closer to winning a Stanley Cup, Toronto might be a good fit. The question is whether the Leafs intention is to add the veteran to bolster their existing corps including Phaneuf or to replace the Leafs team captain with an experienced stop gap if he were to be traded before July 1.
Toronto’s current cap situation does not allow them to go on a free-agent spending spree this summer and based on the lack of quality depth available on the open market this summer, veteran defensemen like Boyle, Brooks Orpik, Andrei Markov and Matt Niskanen are going to be overpaid.
Boyle made $6.67 Million last season in San Jose and could still get between $4-5 Million per season on a short term deal, but if a bidding war escalates for his services, it could mean him getting a deal from someone longer than two years.
The Leafs may decide to offer Franson salary arbitration (he is two years away from qualifying for unrestricted free agency) and will want to get Gardiner signed to a short-term bridge deal similar to the two-year deal Nazem Kadri agreed to last summer, but the club needs to strengthen itself defensively after finishing in the bottom five of the league in goals allowed, which means adding to or replacing some bodies on their blueline.
Adding Boyle to the current group or bringing him in as a replacement appears to be more shuffling the deck than anything, but it depends on what the Leafs get in return in a potential Phaneuf deal and what it allows Nonis to do with the reallocated cap space, such as acquiring/signing a top line center or improving the depth of the blueline.
Young blueliners Morgan Rielly, Petter Granberg and Gardiner will likely be depended on to handle greater responsibilities next season, but they will need to be supported by experienced veterans to reach their full potential and not hung out to dry as previous Leafs teams have done with their young defensemen in the past.
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