Team: 2017-18 Toronto Maple Leafs

Initial Creation Date: Feb. 13, 2017

Published: Feb. 14, 2017

Salary Cap Mode: Basic

Whether or not Toronto makes the playoffs this year or not is debatable, it really depends on what kind of steps forward the young forwards and defencemen can take. Either way though, it is irrelevant. The goal for this season was to be competitive as far into the year as they can and in their current position that should take them into at least late March, baring a total meltdown starting in the next 10 games or so. What the Leafs need to do is continue the Shanaplan. Move out the veterans for younger pieces with high end potential. JVR, Bozak, and Komarov are the best Vets with the most movable contracts. In order to move any of these contracts Toronto needs to take money back as well, which is not a problem as long as the contracts do not outlive those of Marner and Matthews. I have put Lupul and Horton LTIR through Rookie mode to show the full potential cap space available to the Maple Leafs.

Moving these players create holes in the lineup, however they can be used to fill other holes. The second pairing RD is currently the biggest hole, Carrick is a respectable RD but needs more time to develop. He would be better suited on the 3rd pairing. That being the 3rd pairing is atrocious and need to be improved if Toronto ever wants to set its sights higher than making the playoffs. Center depth would be another. hole in their lineup. Gauthier may be able to expand his capabilities by next season but that, I think, would be wishful thinking, therefore, Toronto needs to find a stopgap in the mean time, should be easy enough to acquire through either Free agency or as a cap dump in a trade.

1) Chicago needs to dump salary but its not going to be easy. almost every major contract has a NMC attached to it. JVR would fit very nicely in Chicago beside Toews. They do not really want to lose long time Hawk, Brett Seabrook, but its a large contract that will free up a lot of cap space for a lot of years. Seabrook brings a ton of talent and experience to a blue line that has spent the entire season playing sub par hockey. He brings in stability for both Reilly, who he will be playing with and Gardiner, who will no have Zaitsev, and not Carrick, to protect him. The Draft pick is questionable, as Seabrook is a great player, but it is ultimately a cap dump and Chicago gets 2 NHL left wingers at affordable rates.

2) Montreal is in desperate need of a good center. Bozak is not great but he is a good complimentary piece that can sure up their depth and win them some key face-offs. Leafs get a 4C for a season to give Gauthier another season to grow his game. McCarron is a big RW prospect that should fit in as a depth player in a season or two.

3) This is Toronto using its cap space to acquire some picks from Dallas.

4) This is also Toronto using its cap space to help the team. Orpik is much better than Marincin but Washington is in a cap crunch and needs to dump the 5.5M being taken up by a 3rd pairing defenceman, hence the 1st going with Orpik to Toronto.


P.S. I love that you need to make an actual, productive comment to rate a post. Thanks Cap Friendly

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