The Toronto Maple Leafs certainly need a whole lot of offense if they want to turn this around, but it appears that they are willing to give up a player that can give them some of that.
According to multiple reports, the Maple Leafs will not be sending a qualifying offer to winger Matias Maccelli before the deadline of 5:00 p.m. on Monday. This will be making him an unrestricted free agent on Wednesday and free to sign with whoever he wants.
Matias Maccelli will not be receiving a qualifying offer from the #leafs today, making him an unrestricted free agent, per sources.
— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) June 29, 2026
The 25-year-old forward had a qualifying offer of $4.1 million and there is a world where Maccelli would just accept this and it would turn into a one-year, $4.1-million contract for next season. The only thing is that that is a little expensive and on the ice, there wasn't really a fit.
Matias Maccelli unfortunately just never really fit in Toronto
Maccelli scored 14 goals and 39 points for the Leafs this past season after Brad Treliving acquired him from the Utah Mammoth for a 2027 third-round pick -- which was seen as a shrewd move to get some offense in after losing Mitch Marner.
Unfortunately, there was just never really a fit. Maccelli is the kind of player that should be in a prime position to produce offense and in a bottom six that was chalk-full of grinders (or Max Domi) he just wasn't given the right opportunity. The Leafs are going to be keeping Nick Robertson around, Easton Cowan is a dog but isn't a big one, and William Nylander isn't the most physical player -- you can only have so many small wingers and 5-foot-11 Maccelli is the odd man out in all of this.
In another world, Maccelli would have popped off if head coach Craig Berube gave him consistent linemates (or didn't scratch him) and there was less pressure on the team to win. Hand him over to the Chicago Blackhawks or the Vancouver Canucks next season, with no expectation of playoffs, and he can maybe score 50 or so points.
It was just not the right situation for a player that needed to rejuvenate his career. But now, Maccelli can be one of the unrestricted free agents with the highest upside this summer.
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