UFA Options for the Toronto Maple Leafs :
No. 1 Ondrej Palat
All signs pointed to Ondrej Palat returning to the Tampa Bay Lightning, but now that he’s officially a free agent and won’t be returning to Tampa, Toronto should be all over him.
Toronto’s biggest issue right now is their top-six left-wing position and there’s no better player on the market than Palat.
He has good size at 6-feet-tall, 195 pounds and has a proven track record for performing in the playoffs. With 138 career playoff games, Palat has continued to play a huge part in the Lightning reaching four Stanley Cup Finals’ in his career and he’s delivered in the biggest moments.
Toronto could always use more experience and a winning pedigree and as shown in the past, Palat seems to step up in the biggest games.
It was clear that Tampa’s series against Toronto was their toughest test, besides Colorado of course. So by battling them for seven games, it could help the chances of Palat wanting to join the Leafs, knowing that he could be that player that gets them over the edge.