Don’t Expect Tyler Seguin on the Toronto Maple Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs will likely not be in the running to sign UFA Tyler Seguin next off-season.

Originally drafted by the Boston Bruins with a  pick acquired from the Toronto Maple Leafs, Tyler Seguin is set to be next summer’s John Tavares.

Before I go on, I just want to say that Seguin is one amazing talent. He is. Let’s face it, if Peter Chiarelli trades you then you are an exceptional athlete.

Last season, Seguin had 40 goals, 38 assists, a rate of 0.71 goals/60 and a 51.5 corsi-for percentage (CF%). It’s obvious that Seguin is an elite hockey player and that he will be for a long period of time. While he is an absolute stud, he isn’t a fit for the Toronto Maple Leafs. There just won’t be the money to sign him.

Yet, you can expect there will be plenty of rumours throughout this season about Seguin. You will likely hear rumours and reports about Seguin potentially coming to Toronto. While these rumours may appear on Twitter and news publications across the globe, I can assure you that it will not happen.

First of all, the Dallas Stars will most likely  re-sign Seguin to a massive deal. Aside from Jamie Benn, he is the face of their franchise and will be the face for many years to come. If he does hit the open market, he’s going to get paid like John Tavares, and that puts him out of the Leafs reach.

The Leafs Don’t Need Him

The fact is that the Toronto Maple Leafs don’t need Seguin.

The Maple Leafs have an outstanding trio of centremen in Auston Matthews, Tavares and Nazem Kadri.  It’s the best in the NHL by about a mile.

Points-wise, the Pittsburgh Penguins were better last year. If you add up Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Derrick Brasard’s point totals, you’d see that they are higher than the Maple Leafs trio. The Penguins trio’s point total was at 233 versus the Maple Leafs trio’s total was at 202. But Matthews missed a quarter of the season and he’s still yet to peak, while Crosby and his crew are all past or approaching 30.

Segin would be a nice upgrade over Kadri, but the cost makes it impossible.  Plus there is the concept of diminishing returns.  There just isn’t enough ice time for 40 goal centres on the same team.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have one of the best teams in the NHL. They have the best trio of centremen in the NHL.  They can’t have Seguin too, unfortunately.

So if you see Seguin rumours floating around in a few months, just remember the chances of him signing a contract with the Maple Leafs are very slim.

stats from NHL.com, hockey-reference.com and naturalstattrick.com