Pending UFA Brady Skjei may be the ideal target for the Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs have been linked to many pending UFAs already, but the one nobody's talking about, Brady Skjei, might actually be the best fit.
The Carolina Hurricanes defenseman is coming off of a career year, in which he posted 13 goals and 47 points in 80 games. He also scored 18 goals in 2022-23, which is further evidence that he isn't just a flash in the pan.
Skjei has been remarkably healthy in his career, not missing much time due to injury in his 10-year NHL career, playing 609 regular season games and amassing 247 career points.
Yes, Skjei is a left shot defenseman, and while the Leafs do need to shore up the right side of their D corps, they are losing multiple lefties to UFA this summer and could use an upgrade on the blueline regardless of which way they shoot.
Early reports seem to indicate that Skjei is looking for an AAV that well exceeds the $5.25 he earned over the past few seasons. It's likely that his new cap hit exceeds $6.5M, perhaps eclipsing the $7M threshold.
Skjei's skill set would compliment Jake McCabe's very well, and with McCabe playing the right side at times, he wouldn't have to adjust much to shifting over to the right full-time to form a formidable tandem with Skjei, anchoring the Leafs' 2nd pair next season.
The big question is, will he be available? The rumours seem to suggest that the Hurricanes would like to keep him, especially when they're already likely losing Brett Pesce. We'll have to see where this one goes.
Brady Skjei's stats courtesy of:
| POLL | ||
11 JUIN | 280 ANSWERS Pending UFA Brady Skjei may be the ideal target for the Maple Leafs Do you think Brady Skjei is a good fit for the Maple Leafs? | ||
| Yes, he's a good defenseman | 90 | 32.1 % |
| No, we need to focus on the right side | 70 | 25 % |
| He's going to be too expensive | 63 | 22.5 % |
| Not sure | 57 | 20.4 % |
| List of polls | ||
