Toronto Maple Leafs: Zach Hyman Out, Nick Foligno Returning?

With the salary cap staying flat at $81.5 million once again due to the Covid-19 pandemic, signings that Kyle Dubas and the Toronto Maple Leafs thought they’d be able to make, no longer look possible.

Back on June 4th, Chris Johnston from Sportsnet wrote an article about the difficult situation facing the Maple Leafs when it comes to re-signing Zach Hyman.

A new deal for Hyman will be in the range of $5 million or higher, and will likely for the long term. With the current cap situation being the way that it is, I don’t see the Maple Leafs being able to offer more than $4 million to Hyman unless trades are made first.

As much as Dubas would like for Hyman to remain in Toronto, and as much as Hyman would love to be a Maple Leaf for a long time, it just doesn’t look like a new deal is likely at this point.

The Toronto Maple Leafs Could Still Make Room For Zach Hyman

The Leafs still have options at their disposal if they so wish to use them to re-sign Hyman to a multi-year deal at $5 million or more. The first option is to trade Alex Kerfoot before the NHL expansion draft. Kerfoot has a cap hit of $3.5 million (capfriendly.com) for two more seasons. That amount world cover the majority of a new Hyman deal.

Another option that the Toronto Maple Leafs could use is to re-sign Hyman, and then try to find a veteran backup goaltender for cheap. There are a few goaltenders who will be available this off-season that are used to playing a backup role. If they can find a goaltender to backup Jack Campbell while only making $1.5 million or less. Then Toronto can afford to re-sign Hyman.

If they even want to. Extending a  29 year old, injury prone checking forward is always going to be risky, and as much as Hyman is a fan favorite, he’s not even one of the Leafs top four forwards.

If Toronto is unable to re-sign Hyman, then another option for them could be their 2021 trade deadline acquisition Nick Foligno. Nick Foligno was brought in at the NHL trade deadline to help bolster the Toronto Maple Leafs lineup. To do that Kyle Dubas paid a steep price that included Toronto’s 2021 first-round pick.

Unfortunately for both Toronto and Foligno, he was not 100% healthy during his brief stint with the Maple Leafs. He only played in four of the seven games in the first-round series against the Montreal Canadiens.

Toronto will not likely be an option for Foligno if he is looking for a multi-year deal for the same $5.5 million he made last season or more. However, if Foligno feels like there is unfinished business in Toronto, and that he owes it to the team and to himself to give Toronto the best that he has to offer, he could sign a one-year deal for less money.

What Would Foligno’s New Deal Look Like

If Kyle Dubas can convince Foligno to come back for next season on a one-year deal, it most likely will not be for as cheap as they got him at the trade deadline which was just $1.375 million. A deal for next season will likely be around $3 million, but if Hyman does not return the Leafs can make that happen. (Again, assuming that they want to).

A fully healthy Foligno could play in Toronto’s top six and give the team that hard-hitting, bulldog type player they need. It’s not clear if Toronto has any interest in bringing back Wayne Simmonds, so Foligno would be looked upon for the majority of the team’s grit next season.

Like Foligno, Simmonds might want to come back and try to rectify the team’s unfinished business, it would likely need to be at the league minimum of $750,000.

Some have speculated that Foligno could return to the Columbus Blue Jackets, but their team looks to be starting a rebuild, and I doubt an aging Foligno wants to go through that when he’s trying to chase the Stanley Cup.

Should the Toronto Maple Leafs sign Foligno for $3 – $3.5 Million on a one-year deal if Hyman doesn’t re-sign? I think they should, but time will tell if they do and if it works out.