Other Players to Watch
While neither Barbashev or Gavrikov look like great options for the Toronto Maple Leafs, it seems logical that as a top team with some cap room and a ton of assets, that they’ll make an upgrade sooner or later.
Here is a list of potentially available players:
Patrick Kane: He is 34 and he’s having his worst season ever, but he’s coming off a 94 point campain and almost certainly going to be traded. To the Leafs? Seems unrealistic, but we can hope.
The pending UFA has a $10.5 million dollar cap hit, but with some retention it should be doable. The cost? Who knows, but the chance of putting the best American born player ever next to the guy who will likely surpass him eventually is almost too rich to pass up. Kane and Matthews?
We can dream.
Max Domi: Domi is having a good year in Chicago and there is talk that the Hawks will re-sign him. Considering how much he’s bounced around the league after being a hyped up prospect, you couldn’t blame him.
However, if he’s available he’s an intriguing option for a lot of teams. Probably not the Leafs though, as where would he even play? Memories of that 72 point season are fading fast.
Jakob Chychrun: Arguably the best player available (depending on how you view Kane) Chychrun would be a fun addition to the team, but given the cost and his injury history, he probably isn’t a good fit with the Toronto Maple Leafs.