Did the Leafs violate the CBA by going over 50 contracts when they signed Minten to his ELC? No, and here's why
The Leafs are tight up against it this year - I don't think that's a fact that's been lost on anyone. The team has no cap space and has filled 50/50 roster spots, meaning that there's little-to-no flexibility to speak of. That's why when the Leafs announced that they had signed 2022 2nd round pick Fraser Minten to his entry-level contract, it was a bit of a head-scratcher.
There was a lot of speculation after Minten signed his ELC that the Leafs must have traded a member of their current roster and that the deal hadn't been announced because it was pending a trade call. After all, how else would the team be able to add Minten into the fold, already having filled all 50 of their contract slots? Well, thankfully, The Score's Kyle Cushman has the answer.
Cushman explained via Twitter that the Leafs actually have 3 young players on contract that are all eligible for ELC slides, which essentially just pushes their contracts back by a year. Those players are the newly signed Minten, 2021 5th round pick Ty Voit and undrafted forward Braeden Kressler. So, really, there is no concern with Minten's deal impacting the Leafs' contract count. With these 3 players all eligible to have their ELC's slide, it won't put the Leafs over that threshold.
The downside is that all those who were excited about a potential trade may have to suspend their excitement until the Leafs really do pull the trigger on a deal to open up a contract spot and free up some cap space.
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