General manager Brad Treliving signed Chris Tanev and Oliver Ekman-Larsson to long-term contracts and Timothy Liljegren to a two-year agreement, which allowed the Toronto Maple Leafs to restructure its defense on July 1.
It seems like everything has quieted down in the Toronto Maple Leafs universe as we approach the third week of July, but the organization still has some crucial work to complete.
The Mitch Marner dilemma has not been settled, and the Leafs forwards are worse now than they were at the end of the season. Nevertheless, there are still other matters that require adding players to the roster.
Before training camp begins in September, Treliving needs to complete these two tasks.
2 Tasks for the Toronto Maple Leafs Before the End of the Summer
The Captaincy
The Toronto Maple Leafs went three seasons without a captain before appointing John Tavares for the 2019-20 season. At the time, there was much debate over whether the role should go to Tavares, Auston Matthews, or Morgan Rielly.
Similar to his tenure as captain of the New York Islanders, Tavares has struggled to lead his team deep into the playoffs, managing to get past the first round only once, which matches the Maple Leafs’ performance under his captaincy.
After five years, it is time for the franchise to make a change by handing the captaincy to Auston Matthews, the best player in franchise history. While Tavares has been a hard-working and consistent leader, the team now needs a different kind of leadership.
Fans believe that Matthews has grown as a leader and that he takes responsibility for his remarks to the media. He seems to be more outspoken than Tavares, but he also seems to hold himself to an even higher level.
Extend Matthew Knies
There were rumors that the Maple Leafs might have signed Mitch Marner for an eight-year contract if they had offered him a contract in the $8 million bracket heading into the last year of his entry-level deal. Regretfully, Marner played the entire season and scored 93 points, forcing the team to sign him to a contract that would have cost them around $11 million.
Even if Matthew Knies’ production is unlikely to be the same, it is still possible that he will score 30 goals. The former second-round selection recently concluded his rookie campaign, during which he scored 35 points and scored 15 goals in just 13:41 of ice time while hardly getting any powerplay opportunities.
Knowing what it takes to play an entire 80-game season has helped Knies prepare this summer so that he may be even larger and stronger next season. Knies is ready to make an impact, and if the team uses two powerplays spread evenly, he might get a lot more time on the mantle.
If the team does nothing this summer, Knies might blow up and demand a deal in the Juraj Slafkovsky range; however, if they move before training camp, they might be able to negotiate a much cheaper price.