No. 2: Dougie Hamilton
Hamilton is a pending UFA, but it feels like a team is going to trade for him before he hits free agency. Insert, the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The pending free agent is set for a big pay-day. Although that’s the case, Toronto needs a legit No. 1 defenseman if they ever want to win the Stanley Cup.
6-foot-6, 230 pound right-handed defensemen don’t grow on trees. Especially one that is from Toronto, ON and more than likely grew up rooting for the home team.
If the money was the same, why wouldn’t Hamilton want to play for Toronto in front of his friends and family and be a crucial part to the team’s success? The Leafs were finally able to “woo’ a free agent (John Tavares) into town a few years ago, so there’s no reason to believe they can’t do it again.
Hamilton’s price will be very interesting. If it’s $10M per season, that’ll be a scary contract to absorb, but if it’s between $7-8.5M, that could be more justified. Since the salary cap won’t be rising anytime soon, a team could get Hamilton cheaper than expected.
Similar to the Evander Kane trade rumor, the idea of Hamilton actually being a Leaf is hard to believe, based on his contract, but it’s definitely worth discussing. He would be an unbelievable fit on the Leafs, as well as, the other 31 NHL teams.