Toronto Maple Leafs must say no to adding rumored veterans

The Toronto Maple Leafs have not shut the door on defenseman Mark Giordano. According to Sportsnet's Eric Francis, Giordano's agent, Ritch Winters, has spoken with the Leafs and Edmonton Oilers regarding Giordano's playing future.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have been linked to other veteran free agents this off-season. TSN analyst Frankie Corrado (a former Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman) suggested on a recent episode of TSN Overdrive that the Leafs should consider bringing back forward James van Riemsdyk. If they do, it would likely be an invitation to training camp on a professional tryout (PTO).

Another veteran player who could come into the Leafs training camp on a PTO is forward Max Pacioretty. Elliotte Friedman from Sportsnet and Jay Rosehill from Leafs Nation have reported that the Leafs have expressed some interest in Pacioretty. Although, it sounds like a PTO is not what Pacioretty wants. He wants to sign an actual contract.

All three players bring something valuable, but due to age and health, I think the Leafs should say no. The Leafs could get more production up front from a younger player such as Fraser Minten, Alex Steeves, or Easton Cowan. On defense, there's no point playing Giordano over Simon Benoit or Conor Timmins. With the Leafs recent re-signing of Nick Robertson, there shouldn't be a need to sign any more free agents. Robertson re-signed for one year at $875,000, which leaves the Leafs with very little salary cap space. (All salary cap information from puckpedia.com)

Toronto Maple Leafs don't need more veterans

When the Leafs group of core players were in the early stages of their career, it made sense to surround them with seasoned veterans like Patrick Marleau or Joe Thornton. The need for such a player is not as important.

Adding a player with playoff experience can be helpful, but as with Marleau and Thornton, adding them to the Leafs roster did not amount to much when the games mattered. The same can be said for Nick Foligno and Ryan O'Reilly. Adding them gave fans hope, but no success was found.

The Leafs would be better off using their current team and adding players with speed and skill. Preferably, players with plenty of playing years ahead of them. Leafs head coach Craig Berube and team general manager Brad Treliving should allow the prospects to showcase what they can do during training camp instead of filling camp spaces with veterans on PTO deals.