
No. 2: Jake Muzzin
Jake Muzzin is a fantastic player and he’s done a lot of good things for the Toronto Maple Leafs. He showed his worth during the Leafs playoff push this year, but at $5.625M, it’s time to move on.
By trading Muzzin, the Toronto Maple Leafs will be able to replace him for one-fifth of the price and will be able to add a similar, if not better, player in Rasmus Sandin.
Sandin and Timothy Liljegren are ready for that next step and those two stepping into the line-up will help push an older player like Muzzin out the door and help gain back some much needed salary cap space.
Muzzin’s experience can’t be replaced but he’s had a ton of injuries over the past few years and the miles are adding up on him. He’s still an effective player, but sooner than later his game is going to fall off a cliff.
Based on his price-tag and the fact that he’ll still be wanted by a ton of teams, it’d be a smart move to trade Muzzin this offseason. Obviously Muzzin would need to waive his NTC to make it happen.