Toronto Maple Leafs: Every Pending UFA in the Central Division

Dallas Stars

Roman Polák

The Dallas Stars have several players about to become UFAs. One of them is a former member of the Maple Leafs, Roman Polák. After leaving the Toronto Maple Leafs, he went directly to Dallas where he continued to play exceptional defense.

Last season, at age 32 Polák was a heavily relied upon player for the franchise. He averaged 19:10 minutes of ice time. One year later, in the opening game of the season, Polák was driven into the boards in a manner that sucked the life out of the American Airlines Center in Dallas. The hit was so hard that Polák needed to be helped off the ice with the use of a stretcher.

Polák suffered a small fracture of his sternum as a result of the incident. It delayed his ability to get his season going by several weeks. When Polák returned, his minutes were cut down to 16:40 per game. He did still manage to play 41 games this season while getting $1.75 million AAV.

Corey Perry

Agitator Corey Perry is also up for a new contract. In his first season away from the Anaheim Ducks, he signed a one-year $3.25 million deal. His year in Dallas saw Perry get moved throughout the lineup but he did get the opportunity to play with younger talents, Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin.

Perry is no longer the 50-goal scorer he once was. This season, in 57 games he recorded five goals and 16 assists. His minutes were also slashed to 13:43 per game, the lowest since his first two seasons in the NHL. Perry’s game still has value (and not just driving opposing players and fans nuts), just not as much as it used to.

Mattias Janmark

Mattias Janmark, another of the Stars’ UFAs, had very similar numbers as Perry. Playing on a one-year $2.3 million contract, Janmark recorded 21 points on six goals and 15 assists through 62 games. Though the forward doesn’t get under opponents’ skin in the same manner as Perry, both should be able to secure similar contracts going into next season.

Andrej Sekera

Andrej Sekera skated his 14th year in the NHL this season. After playing with five different teams, Sekera might be looking to latch on with another next season. Any franchise looking for a stay-at-home defender might want to consider Sekera. As a long time veteran in the league, he has been exactly what the Stars expected when they signed him, a player who isn’t at all flashy but knows how to play the game the right way.

Anton Khudobin

Goaltender Anton Khudobin was trusted with taking to the crease in 30 games with the Stars this season. He had a winning record of 16-8-4 while posting an impressive 0.930 save percentage and 2.22 goals-against-average.

Khudobin hit his stride at an ideal time, with his two-year $5 million contract ($2.5 million per season) about to expire. At 33 years old, the goaltender will be looking to cash in on his strong play. Used as a backup, his solid year could earn him a chance at a starting role somewhere.

Martin Hanzal

Last season, Martin Hanzal was limited in his play. He had a serious back injury that held him to just seven games played last season. His back issues continued into this season. They were so inhibiting that Hanzal wasn’t even able to play a single game on the campaign.

Placed on LTIR, Hanzal’s contract is close to an end. Though he hasn’t retired, there’s a real possibility that that will be Hanzal’s fate whether he likes it or not.