Do the Leafs sign Michael Bunting to an extension this summer, or wait and gamble on his upcoming season?
Last off-season, Michael Bunting signed a two year deal with the Toronto Maple Leafs worth $1.9 million ($950,000 AAV) after the Arizona Coyotes chose not to extend him a qualifying offer, allowing him to walk into unrestricted free agency. Bunting, who is from Scarborough, earned a spot on the Leafs' top line, surprisingly doing an amicable job replacing Zach Hyman, playing beside superstars Mitch Marner and Auston Matthews. The end result was a 63-point season (23 goals & 43 assists), good for a points-per-game average of 0.8. Not bad for a 26-year-old rookie.
Bunting will be due for a large pay raise when his contract expires at the end of next season. So should the Leafs try and extend him now? Given a lack of career sample size it is possible the Leafs could get him at a discount if they do push for an extension before Bunting has a chance to build on a stellar 1st year in Toronto. Prior to this season, Bunting had only scored 14 career points in 26 career NHL games over two seasons.
One potential comparable to Michael Bunting is a former Toronto Maple Leafs draft pick, 26-year-old Carter Verhaeghe, who has had a similar path in the NHL as a late bloomer. Two seasons ago, Verhaeghe signed a two year deal with the Florida Panthers worth $2 million ($1 million AAV) after he did not receive a qualifying offer from the Tampa Bay Lightning which allowed him to walk into free agency. Verhaeghe posted 36 points (18 goals & 18 assists) in 43 games in his first season with the Panthers, good for an average of 0.84 points per game. Happy with the player's trajectory, the Panthers decided to extend him right away, rather than waiting. Verhaeghe signed a three year extension worth $12.5 million ($4,166,667 AAV). This contract already looks like a steal for the Panthers, as Verhaeghe posted 55 points last season. If the Leafs believe in Bunting as a player and feel they can afford to keep him around longer term, now might be the time to sign him before he can build a large resume and command a Zach Hyman type contract, or more.
What's more is that Bunting took less to sign in Toronto last summer and might just be amenable to taking less again, knowing that he'll have a very good chance of reprising his role on the top line alongside Matthews and Marner. If the Leafs came in with the Verhaeghe number as their absolute top dollar and negotiated down from there, would the hometown kid agree to stay on a multi-year deal worth in the neighborhood of $3.5M-$3.85M per season? It's certainly possible.
The other side of this coin is that Bunting may prefer to bet on himself, play this season out, rack up a lot of points playing on the top line again, and attempt to hit a home run of a contract in free agency. If Bunting comes in and puts up a 70+ point season, you'd better believe his next AAV will likely start with a 6 or a 7.
Bunts is a home town guy and by all accounts really likes playing in Toronto. He also has an opportunity to continue play on the left wing of two NHL superstars. The fit is perfect for him here in Toronto, perhaps he sees these things and decides he wants to stay long term on a team friendly deal.
| POLL | ||
4 JUIN | 302 ANSWERS Do the Leafs sign Michael Bunting to an extension this summer, or wait and gamble on his upcoming season? What range will Michael Bunting's next contract be in? | ||
| Less than $4 million | 190 | 62.9 % |
| $4 million-$5 million | 77 | 25.5 % |
| $5 million-$6 million | 21 | 7 % |
| $6 million or more | 14 | 4.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
