One of the most relevant topics leading up to training camp has been the possibility of adding a couple of low-cost options to the Toronto Maple Leafs roster. While the club is currently over the cap, injuries will certainly play a role. And unfortunate long-term ailments (i.e., Max Domi) could leave the team short of serviceable NHL-level depth.
That’s why one of the names floating out there was Eeli Tolvanen. The 27-year-old had been sitting in limbo until the New York Rangers enticed him to sign a one-year, show-me deal at $1.5 million.
That’s something the Maple Leafs could have easily done. And at that price point, potentially getting something around 15 goals and 30 points would be fabulous.
Yes, Tolvanen isn’t exactly the top-six game-breaker that Toronto could have used. But that’s not the point. A major question mark has been the club’s lack of depth. As it stands, the current bottom-six core doesn’t boast much scoring in said bottom-six.
Hence, the Maple Leafs may come to regret passing on Tolvanen. He could have provided some much-needed depth scoring. The one-year deal at that price point would have made it easy to erase his cap hit if the contract proved to be a mistake.
Maple Leafs may have other low-cost options on the market
In an earlier piece, I looked into two possibilities the Maple Leafs could target as low-cost options on the free-agent market. Sure, some might not be too keen on Michael Bunting and James van Riemsdyk. But there might be other depth pieces the Leafs could look into.
At this point in the year, unsigned players might be willing to accept a show-me deal in hopes of proving they still have it.
For instance, Gustav Nyquist and Jonathan Drouin are still sitting out there. While they’re coming off very tough years, it doesn’t mean they couldn’t bounce back. And if they’re okay with a deal like the one Tolvanen got, the risk would be relatively minimal.
I agree that the Maple Leafs need to get younger and find other, more productive options out there. But given cap considerations and the scarcity of talented, young players, there’s no reason to think that the organization couldn’t take a chance on a player that might be looking for one more chance to prove they still have something left in the tank.
If such a move worked out, the payoff for the Maple Leafs could end up being a massive one.
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