Toronto Maple Leafs to Submit Expansion Draft List Today
The Toronto Maple Leafs and every other NHL team have until 5 PM today to submit their expansion draft lists.
As you probably already know, the Toronto Maple Leafs will either choose to protect four defenseman and four forwards (plus a goalie) or they can expose a top four defenseman and be given three extra forward spots.
After Alex Kerfoot, there aren’t really two bonus forwards to protect, so the Leafs will most likely go with protecting one of Travis Dermott or Justin Holl.
Lists will be revealed tomorrow.
Toronto Maple Leafs and the Expansion Draft
Though nothing has of yet been announced, it is possible that the Leafs make a trade ahead of the 5PM deadline, perhaps moving Kerfoot instead of risking his loss for nothing.
My personal take on what they should do is protect Travis Dermott. Rasmus Sandin is coming in to the NHL fulltime next season and will require top-four minutes, which makes Justin Holl expendable.
Dermott is also a younger, cheaper and higher-ceilinged player so he is the obvious choice for protection.
If I was the Leafs I would want to get some picks for Holl and for Kerfoot to restock the cupboard which currently only has three picks each in the next two drafts. Obviously the Leafs would need to also acquire a lousy defenseman who meets exposure requirements in such a trade.
If the Leafs could pull this off, they could add to their draft pick stash, and create cap space for a franchise altering move later this summer. They could do this without really hurting their team too much in the present, because, like I said, Sandin already makes Holl expendable, and though the loss of Kerfoot would hurt, everyone has to lose a player anyways.
In addition to the expansion draft, we are all awaiting news of Zach Hyman who is said to be garnering interest around the league. It looks to me very unlikely that Hyman would come back and I don’t think this is necessarily a bad thing.
Of course Hyman has been a great player for the Leafs but he is injury prone and approaching 30. I think the risk of a long term high paying deal to Hyman is far greater than the reward, especially when I think his numbers are a bit juiced from playing with Marner and Matthews.
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At this point I wonder if the Leafs couldn’t at least deal him for a pick in order to allow whoever is going to sign him to go the full eight years. I think that would be the best outcome.