The Toronto Maple Leafs signed first overall pick Auston Matthews, as well as restricted free agents Connor Carrick, Josh Leivo, Peter Holland and Frank Corrado to new deals. With only Martin Marincin unsigned, GM Lou Lamoriello has to find a backup goalie to play behind Frederik Andersen, but it is unknown whether anything more consequential will happen with the club’s roster between now and the start of training camp in September.
It is time once again to answer the questions utmost on the minds of Leafs Nation who follow me on Twitter:
A: Things have been eerily quiet since it was revealed earlier this month that Jared Cowen’s buyout did not go through because the defenseman claimed to be injured at the time.
The case is being reviewed by an arbitrator since Cowen was cleared medically by the Leafs when waived to the AHL in February after the trade sending Dion Phaneuf to Ottawa and Toronto told the 2009 first rounder they intended to buy him out after the season. Cowen in consultation with his doctor chose to have off-season surgery.
Either way, the 25-year-old is not going to play for the Leafs this season. If Toronto wins the case, the buyout will go through as intended. If not, the Leafs will likely put the defenseman on LTIR to clear his $3.1 Million salary but will have to pay Cowen the $4.5 Million owed to him for the final year of his contract.
The only hiccup could be if Cowen is 100% healthy and eligible to play, then he would come off LTIR and only $950,000 of his cap hit would be buried if demoted to the AHL.
A: Yes they do. All that has to happen for the second buyout window to be triggered is for players to file for salary arbitration and Toronto had three players do so in Frank Corrado, Martin Marincin and Peter Holland.
A: The Leafs could invite veteran free agents on tryouts as they did last year with Curtis Glengross, Brad Boyes and Devin Setoguchi, but this season they have a group of young forwards who appear ready to challenge for NHL positions and already have veterans with expiring contracts on the roster in Colin Greening, Milan Michalek and Brooks Laich.
Richards did not perform impressively when given a chance by the Capitals last season and the two-time Stanley Cup winner cannot keep up to the current pace of the league.
If there is any place Toronto may go the tryout route, it will be in goal if the rumors of interest in former Sabres goalie Jhonas Enroth proves to be unfounded.
A: Michalek is likely to play a top six or nine role this season and the Leafs hope the veteran stays healthy and puts up good numbers, which will increase his value at the trade deadline as an expiring contract. Bozak may be safe in the short term, with Toronto striking out on Steven Stamkos, they have Auston Matthews and Nazem Kadri playing on the top two lines and Bozak perfectly fit as a third-line center.
Lupul is a situation that no one knows how it will play out. The veteran seems convinced that he has played his last game for Toronto and Lamoriello refuses to elaborate on where the winger stands within the organization. My suspicion is that either the Leafs will trade him to another team for an equally pricey contract, they exercise a buyout when the arbitration buyout window opens next month or he is told that he will not play next season and disappears like Stephane Robidas.
A: If Toronto has interest in Anaheim defenseman Cam Fowler, it is likely that they would have to give up a scoring forward. The 24-year-old defenseman has another two seasons at a $4 Million cap hit before becoming an unrestricted free agent, but the Ducks are not looking for prospects in exchange, they are looking for offense to help out Corey Perry, Ryan Kesler and Ryan Getzlaf.
James van Riemsdyk would seem to be a perfect fit for a Fowler deal, since he has an equally reasonable $4.25 Million cap hit for two more years, but it is unlikely that Toronto would want to move the big winger coming off an injury shortened season and being one of the few established scorers on a Leafs team that had trouble scoring last season.
A: Enroth should not be an expensive signing, since he was a UFA last summer and signed with the LA Kings for $1.25 Million.
The Leafs are just $1.3 Million under the cap and have Marincin to sign, but they can go 10% over the cap during the off-season while players who will go on LTIR count against the cap. The possibility of shedding salary by trade or buyout is possible and players like Michalek, Lupul and Colin Greening could be candidates, but Bozak provides veteran depth up the middle.
It looks as if Mike Babcock wants to avoid putting a lot of responsibility on Matthews at the start of the season, so Bozak will likely start the season with the Leafs, but few veterans will be safe around the deadline.
A: A realistic trade would be Toronto trading one of their young forwards for a backup goaltender. With William Nylander, Connor Brown, Mitch Marner, Nikita Soshnikov and Zach Hyman pushing for jobs, a Josh Leivo for Scott Wedgewood deal would be beneficial for both the Leafs and New Jersey. Both players would have a more legitimate chance at making the NHL if that trade occurred.
A: I’ve never liked the comparison game when it comes to players, but I’ve heard others compare Jimmy Vesey to Rangers winger Chris Kreider. The 23-year-old Hobey Baker winner has the size, skill and skating ability to be an effective NHL power forward, but it will likely take a year or two for him to reach that lofty height.
Van Riemsdyk was selected 2nd overall behind Patrick Kane in 2007 and has a remarkable skill set, so it is asking a lot for Vesey to match up to that.
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