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Toronto Maple Leafs: 4 Goalie Options Following Petr Mrazek Trade

By Stephen Nixon |
Jun 22, 2018; Dallas, TX, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas announces the number twenty-nine overall pick in the first round of the 2018 NHL Draft at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 22, 2018; Dallas, TX, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Kyle Dubas announces the number twenty-nine overall pick in the first round of the 2018 NHL Draft at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports
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The Toronto Maple Leafs freed up $3.8M by flipping Petr Mrazek to the Chicago Blackhawks and it only cost them a few draft positions.

By trading Petr Mrazek, the Toronto Maple Leafs continued to show that any contract is moveable and cap-flexibility is the most important asset.

In order to get rid of Mrazek’s $3.8M contract for the next two seasons, it cost the Leafs 13 slots in the draft, but since the player they wanted at 25 was already gone, and they correctly guessed that their second choice would be available at 38, the move was a no-brainer.

Toronto’s been known to flip their pick’s to clear cap-space in the past, most famously trading a first-rounder to get rid of Patrick Marleau’s deal a few years ago.

However, this deal is nowhere close to as bad as the Marleau trade.

Even at the time, that Marleau trade was justified because $6M in cap-space is way more important than a first round pick in the 20’s.

But this Mrazek deal was perfect, for both sides. Chicago was able to move up in the NHL Entry Draft and secured a starting goalie for next year, while Toronto cleared cap-space.

Having $3.8M in cap-space gives the Leafs a ton of options now that they didn’t have before and it means that they can go big-name hunting.

As such, here are three goalie options that the Toronto Maple Leafs will be targeting with the cap-space.

Jan 11, 2022; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Jack Campbell (36)   Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 11, 2022; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Jack Campbell (36)   Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports /

No. 1: Jack Campbell

In 14 career playoff games with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Campbell has a .915 SV% and 2.45 GAA and in two career Game 7 appearance’s, Campbell has allowed four total goals.

When the game’s have been the most important, Campbell has shown that he’s not the issue. I know they’ve continued to lose with him, but it’s been the goal-support that’s really cost the team over the last few years.

Running it back with Campbell may sound scary, but it may also be their best option.

He was an NHL All-Star last year and the inability to have a legitimate back-up goalie behind him really hurt him. Campbell is a number-one netminder, but he needs a healthy back-up to give him rest throughout the season.

He only played 49 games last year, but that was still the most in his career. Not only that, but those games were lumped together, so playing so much, so often, eventually put Campbell on the injury report.

Campbell can be the guy, however in the regular season, he needs rest, so at the right price, there’s no reason to believe that Campbell can’t be the goalie who gets this team over the hump.

TAMPA, FLORIDA – JUNE 26: Darcy Kuemper #35 of the Colorado Avalanche  . (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
TAMPA, FLORIDA – JUNE 26: Darcy Kuemper #35 of the Colorado Avalanche  . (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

No. 2: Darcy Kuemper

The reigning Stanley Cup champion is not returning to the Colorado Avalanche next season, which means he could be the next starting goalie for the Leafs.

At 6-foot-5, 215 pounds, Kuemper is your typical modern-day NHL netminder. His size is a huge advantage and when healthy, he’s been one of the best goalies in the league over the past three seasons.

However, health is still the biggest concern with Kuemper.

Despite winning a Stanley Cup a few weeks ago, Kuemper’s health came into question, as he only won 10 of the 16 games for the Avalanche this post-season. Not only that, but during those starts, he finished with a .902 SV% and 2.57 GAA. (stats: hockeyreference.com)

The Avalanche were averaging around four goals per game in the playoffs, so almost any goalie in the NHL could have led that team to victory, which is a scary thought if Toronto signed him.

They’d basically be taking the same risk they took with Petr Mrazek, and we all know how that turned out.

I’d be cautious about signing Kuemper if I was Kyle Dubas, but despite the pessimism, he’ll still be near the top of the Leafs board for goalie options for next season.

Mar 6, 2020; Anaheim, California, USA; Anaheim Ducks goaltender John Gibson (36) makes a save against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first period at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 6, 2020; Anaheim, California, USA; Anaheim Ducks goaltender John Gibson (36) makes a save against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first period at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports /

No. 3: John Gibson

Gibson hasn’t been great for the past few season’s, but at $6.4M AAV for the next five seasons, he’s a very intriguing trade target for Toronto.

If you looked strictly at Gibson’s stats over the past three years, without seeing his name connected to it, you’d say that Gibson is a back-up goalie making $2M per season.

Since 2019, his game has gone sour, but that could be for a lot of factors. It could be because the Anaheim Ducks roster has been in shambles since then, it could be because of the pandemic, or it could just be that he’s not any good anymore.

Either way, that’s the $6.4M question for Toronto because it wasn’t that long ago that Gibson was an awesome player.

Gibson had a four-year stretch where he was essentially a .920 SV% and 2.30 GAA goaltender, which would make him a top-five(ish) goalie in the league. The fact that he did this for roughly five years makes him such an interesting trade target, because you’d have to think that that goalie is still in him.

A change of scenery is always good, so maybe he’d return to his old-self if he was shipped to Toronto, but that’s the huge risk that the Leafs would be taking if they made a move for him.

NEWARK, NJ – APRIL 29: Mackenzie Blackwood #29 of the New Jersey Devils warms up prior to the game against the Detroit Red Wings on April 29, 2022 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Rich Graessle/Getty Images)
NEWARK, NJ – APRIL 29: Mackenzie Blackwood #29 of the New Jersey Devils warms up prior to the game against the Detroit Red Wings on April 29, 2022 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Rich Graessle/Getty Images) /

No. 4: Mackenzie Blackwood

For whatever reason, it feels like the marketplace isn’t too keen on Mackenzie Blackwood joining the Leafs, but I personally just see Jack Campbell 2.0 in him and that’s not a bad thing.

When Toronto traded for Campbell, he was a former high draft-pick who just hadn’t found his way yet. He was making a small contract, but ultimately found his calling with the Leafs and became an NHL All-Star goalie.

Why can’t Blackwood be that guy for the Leafs?

The 25-year-old has not been good over the past two seasons, but then again, who has been good for the New Jersey Devils? That team was one of the worst teams in the NHL for the past two seasons and any goalie would have struggled in that system.

I know the Devils were still pretty bad during Blackwood’s first two seasons, in which he put up good stats, but injuries really hurt him the past two years.

Next. Why is Shanahan Still Employed?. dark

Injuries are definitely a concern with Blackwood, but at 25-years-old and only $2.8M, he should be someone to consider. Even if he’s a 1B to another goalie on this list, or back-up, Blackwood is someone worth taking a chance on because he has all of the skills to be a really good goalie in this league.

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