A very important week for the Leafs ahead; there is some major movement coming
As we settle into the dog days of summer, there isn't going to be a whole lot of hockey news to speak of until players begin to travel back to their NHL cities ahead of training camp this fall. However, for the Leafs, there is still plenty of business to be conducted. Auston Matthews and William Nylander still need contract extensions, Brad Treliving still needs to shore up his blueline and the Leafs have some moves to make to get under the camp, clearing space to sign Ilya Samsonov.
As we well know, Samsonov has filed for salary arbitration and has a hearing coming up in just 5 days, which means that a resolution to his situation is coming this week. It also means that, whether by buyout or trade, Matt Murray will likely be on the move this week as well.
A buyout for Murray wouldn't hurt the Maple Leafs much, if at all, this season, as the cap penalty would be less than a league-minimum salary. However, next season, the Leafs would be on the hook for $2M, which may or may not be significant depending on how much the salary cap goes up, how much money the Leafs plan to clear out next summer and what the contracts for Matthews and Nylander end up looking like.
I'm sure, in an ideal world, that the Leafs would like to have all of their business done this week so that they have a better picture of what their situation will look like for next season and beyond. However, we don't live in an ideal world, and GM Brad Treliving may end up having to settle for having two or three items being checked off his list next week with some more work to follow deep into the summer.
The next 5-7 days should be interesting in Toronto, and there's always a chance that the silence from the organization of late means that they're grinding away to conclude all of their business so everyone can enjoy what remains of their summer vacation. Regardless, we know that there's going to be some movement this week, which gives us something to look forward to and get excited about.
| POLL | ||
16 JUILLET | 7 ANSWERS A very important week for the Leafs ahead; there is some major movement coming How will the Leafs deal with the Matt Murray situation this week with Ilya Samsonov's arbitration date fast approaching? | ||
| Trade | 1 | 14.3 % |
| Buyout | 5 | 71.4 % |
| Neither - he'll be on LTIR next year | 1 | 14.3 % |
| List of polls | ||
