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Toronto Maple Leafs: No Reason to Extend Michael Bunting

By James Tanner

Apr 21, 2022; Tampa, Florida, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs center John Tavares (91), left wing Michael Bunting (58), Tampa Bay Lightning left wing Brandon Hagel (38) and teammates fight during the second period at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 21, 2022; Tampa, Florida, USA; Toronto Maple Leafs center John Tavares (91), left wing Michael Bunting (58), Tampa Bay Lightning left wing Brandon Hagel (38) and teammates fight during the second period at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Toronto Maple Leafs have never been afraid to let a player walk.

There is a misconception among NHL fans that letting players go in free-agency without getting compensation is mismanagement, but the Toronto Maple Leafs know better.

In the NHL, unless you have a star player, cap space is probably preferable to a commitment.  The usage you get out of a player after the deadline , the roster flexibility, and the ability to free up cap space is almost always worth not getting any compensation for losing a player.

When the Leafs lost Hyman, he was great for them in the playoffs the summer before he left, and then they replaced him with Bunting for 5 x less than Hyman ended up signing for.  Bunting ended up having one of the best 5v5 seasons of any player in the last 20 years, and he followed it up by having a great year this season.

Don’t get me wrong – Bunting is a great player and a major part of this team.  But Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner can probably turn whoever they play with into a star.

On top of that, the Leafs have some in-house replacements ready to roll.

Toronto Maple Leafs Can’t Sign Bunting

Bunting is great, but he’s going to be 4 x more than Matthews Knies and Nick Robertson, both of whom, if healthy, are locks to be in the NHL next year.

Robertson may have suffered some unfortunate injuries, but he has an elite NHL shot and a motor that never stops. He’s be a great replacement for Bunting.

Knies is a budding power-forward and will get every chance to succeed.

Add in Jarnkrok and Kerfoot and you’ve got four wingers to follow Marner and Nylander.   Re-sign O’Reilly and then you have nowhere to play Bunting.

If, however, the Leafs do want to keep him, they can offer him a nice eight-year security deal for $3 million each year.  That’s a solid $24 million to stay on the best team in the league.  It’s probably not the preferred option with all the players the Leafs have coming, and if they win this year they’ll be even more likely to give younger players a shot.

It’s an unfortunate side of the business because Bunting is a great player and if finances were not an issue he’d be a slam-dunk to stay on the team for years.

Next. The Leafs Are a Consistent and Excellent Playoff Team. dark

But if I was a betting man, I would bank on Bunting signing with another team this summer.

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