Maple Leafs set to terminate contract of prospect

The Toronto Maple Leafs are terminating the contract of a prospect that some fans were pretty excited about at one point in time.

Reported by Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman, the Leafs are putting 22-year-old forward Ty Voit on unconditional waivers to terminate his contract. This is a mutual termination as the player is seeking to sign with a new organization for a fresh start.

Voit, 22, was originally drafted by the Maple Leafs 153rd overall in the fifth round in 2021.  He was entering the final year of his entry-level contract (ELC). 

A diminutive winger, Voit was a standout with the Ontario Hockey League’s (OHL) Sarnia Sting amassing 213 points in 183 career games (eliteprospects.com) and likely would have had gaudier numbers had it not been for the pandemic.

In the two years since turning pro he has shown that he is a high end player in the third-tier ECHL and is ready for the next step. However, after suffering a season ending injury in his rookie year (2023/24) and debut game for the second tier AHL’s Toronto Marlies, he has failed to move beyond the ECHL. 

Voit contract to be mutually terminated

It is unclear why this move was made at this time, aside from a likely mutual desire to end the relationship. He was drafted under the previous regime led by former general manager Kyle Dubas. 

Since the current GM, Brad Treliving has taken over he has shown that he is setting a clear vision for the club moving forward and has let most of the previous regimes prospects walk away. 

This summer alone, the Maple Leafs have lost many once highly regarded prospects. Notably, Topi Niemela and Roni Hirvonen, among others -- but those players are unlike Voit, since the Leafs are keeping their signing rights. There is a clear prioritization of prospects with more size and who play a certain style.

Voit, after posting 37 points in 63 games for Maple Leafs' ECHL affiliate, the Cincinnati Cyclones likely would have returned to the ECHL. As I stated above, he would not have been given the proper priority to make the jump, especially given the current contract situation.

Between various minor league and NHL contracts, the Leafs currently have a logjam in their development system with at least 22 forwards under contract to play in the minor leagues next year. This is even with the Leafs only being at 41/50 contracts with Voit out of the system. 

Hopefully, Voit can land on his feet and find himself a good opportunity. He has shown a high level of talent up to this point which should be valuable to many clubs.