The Toronto Maple Leafs have made one of their biggest moves so far this offseason in re-signing star center John Tavares to a team-friendly deal of four years for $17.52 million. In doing so, it has now given the Maple Leafs enormous amounts of flexibility with ample cap space to use heading into free agency season to address many of their needs. That is particularly important especially if Mitch Marner does not come back, which appears as the likeliest outcome at this moment with talks of a potential sign-and-trade with the Vegas Golden Knights.
As a result, which top free agents should the Leafs aggressively pursue? Here, we we will take a look at three candidates that would fall under that category.
Nikolaj Ehlers
Often playing behind the likes of Mark Scheifele, Blake Wheeler, Patrik Laine and Kyle Connor with the Winnipeg Jets, winger Nikolaj Ehlers has often been an underrated contributor on the club. With the ability to average close to 25 goals and 60 points per season, Ehlers’ numbers could take off if given the right linemates to work with.
This past season, he had put up 24 goals and 39 assists for 63 points in 69 games during the regular season. Ehlers even tied for the team lead in playoff goals with five, despite playing less games than his counterparts. Entering his prime now at the age of 29, he becomes one of the top point-getters in an underwhelming free agent class. He would be a decent replacement for Marner and should be able handle duties in the top six seamlessly.