3 Expensive Goalies the Toronto Maple Leafs Could Acquire
Jack Campbell is the Toronto Maple Leafs number-one goalie, but with limited experience, the team may want to spend a little extra money on another netminder.
The Toronto Maple Leafs are not a salary-cap strapped team at the moment. Although it may feel that way because they have $40 invested into four forwards, they’re actually going to have roughly $11M of cap-space to spend in free agency.
With that much cap-space, the Leafs have the luxury of using it in a few different ways. They could spend half of it on a top-six left-winger to play with the core-four, or they could spread it out wisely on more depth pieces.
However, one of the more interesting ways to spend it is to target an expensive back-up or 1A/1B goaltender.
The Stanley Cup Finals saw two expensive starting goalies, with the Montreal Canadiens investing roughly $14M in their tandem netminders. In my opinion, that’s way too much on your goalies, but they made it to the Finals, so clearly they know more than I do.
Since Campbell only makes $1.65M, the Leafs have the ability to bring in a player who’s much more expensive than him, while still staying under the salary-cap. It’s not likely that they would spend $7M on another goalie, but if there’s someone who they desperately like, it could be worth it.
The Leafs core-four is going to have to be the driving factor for this team to win, so if they can finally produce in the playoffs and it’s complimented with A+ goaltending, it could be the recipe to success for Toronto.
Here are three expensive goaltending options for the Toronto Maple Leafs this offseason.
No. 1: Freddie Andersen
I know this seems like a terrible decision, but how many more better realistic options are there besides Andersen?
With a career 2.65 GAA and .915 SV%, we all know the type of goalie that Andersen is. He has games where he looks as steady as Carey Price, but also has performances where he allows five goals on 20 shots. (stats hockeydb.com).
When he’s good, he’s a top-10 goalie in NHL, but when he’s bad, he’s one of the worst. It’s a rollercoaster of emotions with Andersen, but on a one-year $5M deal, maybe he’s the answer?
Andersen seems to have a good relationship with the players, especially Auston Matthews, and it feels like the team believes in him as a goalie. They also have a ton of faith in Jack Campbell, but if Andersen is your back-up next year, you could be in a worse spot.
For the past few years, we’ve seen Andersen falter in the playoffs because he’s played too many games. If he’s asked to play between 30-40 games, instead of 60 (which he typically does) he may perform much better than previous seasons.
Also, the battle for the number-one spot should only increase competition and performance for both goalies, as they duke it out to get the starter’s net.
Bringing Andersen back isn’t the most ideal thing, but on a one-year deal at $5M, I could understand it.
No. 2: Marc-Andre Fleury
If you’re the Vegas Golden Knights, I don’t think you want to get rid of Fleury, but it could be their only way out of salary-cap hell.
Fleury has one-year left at $7M per season, but the Golden Knights also have Robin Lehner signed for four more years at $5M. Based on those contracts and the fact that Fleury is seven years older than Lehner, the team may be inclined to move on from Fleury now, instead of letting his contract expire.
Lehner has shown that he can be a number-one goalie too, so trading Fleury now would make a ton of sense for Vegas, despite the fact that Fleury just won the Vezina Trophy, as the league’s top netminder.
On a one-year deal at $7M, Fleury would be an unbelievable fit in Toronto. He’s won three Stanley Cups and has played in five, so he brings a ton of experience that is valuable. Not only that, but he seems like he would make a great mentor for Jack Campbell and could steal the net from him as well.
His contract is expensive but for one-year, it’s very manageable.
No. 3: Tuukka Rask
The idea of Tuukka Rask returning to Toronto and helping them finally win a Stanley Cup, brings me so much excitement.
Rask is one of the reasons why the Leafs continued their tailspin in the mid-2000s and early 2010s, because if the team had never traded him, the history could have been different. After picking Justin Pogge over Rask, the team has yet to win a playoff series, while Rask has been to three Stanley Cup Finals, winning one as a back-up goalie.
Rask is coming off a $7M contract, and there’s no reason to believe that he’d sign for anything less than that. The Boston Bruins have a lot of cap-space right now, so it’s likely that the two sides would come to an agreement, but if the Leafs had a chance to do it, they should seriously consider signing Rask.
After years of torture, Rask signing back in Toronto would bring a sense of hope and it would help erase those horrible years.
Boston is still a great team, but they’re aging. Toronto has a better chance to win and by adding Rask, it would make them an even more legitimate Stanley Cup contender.
3 Depth UFA Defenseman to Sign. dark. Next
There’s probably a five percent chance that Rask would ever sign in Toronto, but that’s all the hope we need as Leafs fans. The former Vezina Trophy winner would be a great fit with the Leafs and it would finally give the team a top-five goalie in the league for the first time since the the early 2000s.