5 Hometown Players the Toronto Maple Leafs Should Sign
Every kid growing up in Toronto dreams of playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs one day.
John Tavares and Jason Spezza are two current Toronto Maple Leafs that made that a reality and there may be a few more joining them this off-season. Every off-season, it feels like there’s a player the Leafs target that was born in the Greater Toronto Area. Whether it was Steven Stamkos, John Tavares or David Clarkson, the team had interest.
Stamkos would have been great for the Leafs, but missing out on him opened the door for Tavares. Meanwhile, Clarkson turned out to be one of the worst contracts signed in the history of the NHL.
Returning home should be a joyous occasion, but sometimes it’s hard to live up to expectations. Although your support system is strong with all of your local friends and family cheering you on, the monkey on your back gets 1000 times heavier when you go on a cold-streak.
Toronto may be a wonderful city to live in, with unbelievable accommodations, but the pressure of performing in your hometown can be too much. That’s why you don’t see as many player’s return home as you would think.
Tavares is the obvious exception, as the future Hall-of-Famer is embracing the idea of playing for the team he grew up idolizing. As the team’s captain, he’s the leader on-and-off the ice and will most likely be a community ambassador for decades after he retires.
The Leafs are a few pieces away from winning a Stanley Cup, so you’d have to think that every kid who grew up in Toronto would give anything to win a championship in their home city. Especially, since the city is starved for a title after a 53-year drought.
Who know’s if these players want to return to Toronto, but here are five hometown kids the Leafs should consider signing this off-season.
#5. Jason Spezza
We’ve talked a lot about Spezza returning to the Leafs, but why not bring him back next season?
There aren’t too many better options at $700K than Spezza and he’s already said he would love to be back. Spezza had nine goals and 25 points last year in 58 games played. He was on-pace to have his best statistical season since 2016-17 before the year stopped short.
Although he finished with zero points in five qualifying series games, the line of Jason Spezza-Pierre Engvall-Kyle Clifford was arguably the Leafs second best. Besides Auston Matthews-John Tavares-Mitch Marner, the Spezza-line brought a ton of energy.
Based on his salary and determination to win a Stanley Cup in his hometown, Spezza has to return. He’s going to provide more than enough offense and has the Hockey IQ to put himself in the right place at the right time.
He can also chip-in as a second-unit power-play guy and that can’t be said for too many players making $700K. A one-year contract at league minimum is exactly what the Leafs need right now, so bring the veteran back for one more run at a Cup.
#4. Trevor Daley
Dear, advanced analytics guru’s, please don’t look at Trevor Daley’s stats right now. You may throw up.
Over the past two seasons, Daley’s corsi rating was around 40 percent, which is putrid. You could say that it was terrible because he played on the Detroit Red Wings the past two seasons, but those numbers were one of the worst on the Wings.
Ouch.
So why should the Leafs sign this player and look past those awful stats? Well, they need defensive-depth and a player like Daley could help that cause. It was only a few short years ago that Daley’s possession numbers were much improved and he was a cornerstone on back-to-back Stanley Cup winning teams in Pittsburgh.
The Penguins and Leafs play a similar style of hockey and Daley could once again excel in Toronto’s system. As a puck-moving defenseman who’s an extremely gifted skater, Daley could be a solid third-pairing defenseman who could even play second-unit power-play minutes if needed.
A change of scenery from the worst team in the NHL to his hometown team could help him tremendously. At 36-years-old, he only has one or two years left in the league, so why not take a chance in Toronto and help out a few young defenseman along the way?
#3. Joe Thornton
Who wouldn’t love to see Jumbo Joe finish his career lifting a Stanley Cup with the Toronto Maple Leafs?
Although Thornton grew up in London, we’ll consider him a local-kid. Thornton has been linked to Toronto for a long-time and fans would be thrilled if he came back home.
The 41-year-old has made almost $110M in salary alone during his career so you would hope he’d be willing to take a $1-2M deal to join the Leafs. The San Jose Sharks could still win a Stanley Cup next season, but he’d have better luck competing for a championship in Toronto.
Even at his age, he’s continued to produce. With similar numbers to Spezza, the vision of Thornton hasn’t left. He still has the ability to find an open player and rack up assists.
Despite most likely playing on the third or fourth line if he signed in Toronto, he would still be playing with immensely skilled players. He would most likely be paired with someone who could be his son, Nick Robertson, and either Andreas Johnsson or Ilya Mikheyev, if they’re both around next year.
The last veteran Shark to join the Leafs (Patrick Marleau) performed very well in Toronto, but he overstayed his welcome. Let’s get Thornton to the Leafs on a one-year deal and see what he can do.
#2. Wayne Simmonds
The Athletic’s Pierre Lebrun spoke to Simmonds last week and here’s what he said about joining his hometown team:
“So, of course it’s crossed my mind. I know they’re in a bit of a salary cap situation and things of that nature, but you know I’m open to everything, Toronto’s got a great core of players and I think that’s definitely a team where I could go in and make an impact right away… It’s up to the teams. Whoever wants to choose me, I’ll be waiting. I’ll definitely be ready to go.’’
It’s not everyday that you hear a player speak so truthful about his future. Simmonds is fully aware of the cap-crunch in Toronto and knows he can make a difference there. After signing a one-year $5M contract last year, Simmonds may be interested in a similar length deal with less money to give the Leafs a hometown discount.
He only scored eight goals last year, but he’s completely healthy for the first time in two years. The six-time 20-goal scorer could be a perfect addition to the Leafs fourth line if he’s rejuvenated.
#1. Chris Tanev
Obviously the number-one spot is reserved for a right-handed defenseman. If you weren’t aware by now, the team kind of needs one. Born in Toronto, Tanev has lived the life that a lot of people his age do. Move to Vancouver at 21-years-old and never come back.
Joking aside, Tanev has been a reliable top-four defenseman in Vancouver for years. He doesn’t provide much offense, but that’s not needed, especially in Toronto. He’s a defensively-sound player who if you don’t notice him all night, means he had a great game.
The Canucks have a little bit of cap-space for the 2020-21 season but after that it gets tough. Both Ellias Pettersson and Quinn Hughes are scheduled to become Restricted Free Agents that off-season and are going to cost a ton of money.
They also have to make a decision on pending Unrestricted Free Agent Jacob Markstrom, so money may be in tight in Vancouver for a while.
As a result, Tanev could be expendable. Although he’s an important piece, you’d have to imagine he’ll be asking for another contract around $4.5-5.5M per season, which could be too rich for Vancouver’s blood.
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If the Leafs make a trade or two, they could be able to afford a contract like that and for a right-handed defenseman like Tanev, it could be worth every penny.