Insider reveals Leafs may buyout blueliner for one specific reason
The NHL's buyout window officially opened on Friday, which the Canucks took advantage of and bought out defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson. Many were surprised that the Leafs did not buy out Matt Murray on Friday afternoon or over the weekend with Ilya Samsonov and Joseph Woll appearing to be the team's tandem heading into next season. A buyout for Murray will likely come after the draft if the Leafs are unable to trade him, but they could also opt to use a buyout for another player that would surprise everyone.
Frank Seravalli reported on Daily FaceOff Live today that the Leafs could look into buying out their best defensive blueliner, T.J. Brodie for a very lame but specific reason. That reason is that the Leafs would not have any buyout penalty associated with Brodie on this year's cap, meaning they would gain the full $5M in cap space that they would have had to work around if they don't buyout Brodie. The following season, the Leafs would face a buyout penalty and cap hit of $2.5M which is easy to absorb with the cap expected to rise significantly.
The move itself however, makes zero sense for the Leafs. Brodie is one of, if not the Leafs' best defensive blueliners and would create a significant hole on the back end. Not only can Brodie play both sides of the ice, but he is a top penalty killer for the Leafs and has been a stable, reliable partner for many, including Morgan Rielly. Another reason why this move makes zero sense for the Leafs is because they would likely have to replace Brodie with someone asking for $5M or more in free agency or trade for someone with the same cap hit.
| POLL | ||
JUIN 19 | 400 ANSWERS Insider reveals Leafs may buyout blueliner for one specific reason Should the Leafs buy out T.J. Brodie to open up an additional $5M in cap space this summer? | ||
| No | 161 | 40.3 % |
| Yes | 124 | 31 % |
| Only if they acquire a tangible upgrade first | 115 | 28.8 % |
| List of polls | ||
