If we take a player with Bo Horvat’s cap hit ($5.5 million) but add more term to the contract, we end up with Travis Konecny from the Philadelphia Flyers.
Konecny has two more years left on his deal after this season. He has 11 goals and 14 assists for 25 points in 24 games this season.
Those 25 points would place him fifth on the Toronto Maple Leafs between Michael Bunting (21) and John Tavares (30), though he’d unlikely get the prime minutes in Toronto he is used to on the Flyers. (Stats from hockey-reference.com) (Salary cap info from capfriendly.com)
Konecny finished the 2021-22 season with 16 goals and 36 assists for 52 points in 79 games.
He could be a good option for Toronto to use as the left winger for John Tavares’ line. The 25-year-old Konecny is averaging over 20 minutes a game and could be a perfect fit for Toronto’s top six. His Corsi numbers are also above 50%, which means the team controls the puck more than 50% of the time when he is on the ice.
Playing on the Maple Leafs and playing with guys like John Tavares and Mitch Marner would elevate Konecny’s stats. He registered 61 points during the 2019-20 season and could reach or surpass that number by playing with Toronto.
As the Philadelphia Flyers continue to struggle, Konecny’s name is one that fans should keep an eye on.