The Toronto Maple Leafs need to urgently extend this shutdown defenceman

The Toronto Maple Leafs need to prioritise extending Jake McCabe this season. McCabe is entering the final year of his current deal. If he remains unsigned, he’ll become a UFA this summer. While that’s not necessarily a bad thing, the Toronto Maple Leafs cannot risk allowing McCabe to hit the market.

So, let’s explore why the Toronto Maple Leafs must extend Jake McCabe this season, preventing him from ever hitting the market.

The Argument for Keeping Jake McCabe with the Toronto Maple Leafs

As a free agent, McCabe would draw plenty of interest from other clubs around the league. Despite his physical style of play, McCabe has been surprisingly durable throughout his career. That alone would make McCabe an interesting addition to any club looking for a solid, reliable, defensive defenceman.

While McCabe won’t light up the scoresheet, he’s able to provide strong, consistent defence. Last season, McCabe formed an unexpected shutdown pairing with Simon Benoit. The duo emerged as a tough pairing for opposing teams.

The best part about McCabe is that he makes sound decisions. He doesn’t turn over the puck by flinging it up the middle. He doesn’t try nifty plays around opposing forwards. McCabe is the type of player who finishes his checks and dumps the puck out of the zone whenever needed.

Then, there’s the physical part of his game. McCabe was acquired from the Chicago Blackhawks essentially to replace the injured Jake Muzzin. Like Muzzin, McCabe’s play is focused on taking the safe way out. McCabe doesn’t wheel and deal. He looks for the safest way to clear the puck out of the zone.

Now, there’s one other crucial reason for extending McCabe sooner rather than later. There’s no telling how long Chris Tanev can be a significant contributor to the team. Also, there’s no guarantee that Oliver Ekman-Larsson can provide the Leafs with reliable play.

Moreover, Timothy Liljegren is not going to be the solution to the Leafs blue-line situation. That means that beyond Morgan Reilly, McCabe is the only other blueliner the Leafs can truly count on to be there throughout the season.

Barring any serious injuries, McCabe should be a rock this upcoming season. He’s the type of player Craig Berube likes. So, expect McCabe to play a more prominent role. He and Benoit should emerge as Toronto’s most valuable defence pairing.

Predicting Jake McCabe’s New Contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs

This season, McCabe will make $2 million against the cap. That’s a bargain considering the type of play that he delivers regularly. However, don’t expect McCabe to get that much next season. He is due for a raise and the Leafs know it.

While other clubs may be tempted to overpay, McCabe should settle for a decent raise unless he tries to get the best possible deal elsewhere. Considering Toronto signed Ekman-Larsson to a $3.5 million AAV deal and Liljegren to a $3 million AAV, per PuckPedia, it’s fair to assume that McCabe’s new deal would land somewhere in that range.

Nevertheless, McCabe could fetch more than $4 million on the open market if there was a team desperate enough. Now, I don’t personally think McCabe wants to leave Toronto. I feel he’s comfortable with the team. GM Brad Treliving will do everything he can to make a deal work.

It’s hard to tell when a deal, if any, happens. But given the Leafs lack of blue-line depth and the lack of high-end prospects in the pipeline, the Toronto Maple Leafs cannot take any chances with Jake McCabe.

Something like a four-year deal with an AAV of about $3 to $3.5 million should keep McCabe around for a while. If everything goes right, the Leafs could have a strong blue line for the next few seasons.