Potential PTO candidates for the Toronto Maple Leafs
With training camp just around the corner, there are several UFAs who may make for excellent PTO targets for the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2024-25.
With most teams having conducted their offseason business and addressing their roster needs in free agency, there are still an abundance of names available with a great deal of NHL experience.
As always, we should begin to see a few more names come off the board in August and September before we see teams begin to sign players to professional tryout agreements. This year, there are some very intriguing candidates that the Leafs may be interested in bringing in on a PTO if they are unable to secure a deal this summer.
Kevin Labanc, formerly of the San Jose Sharks, is an interesting target for the Leafs. Labanc registered just 9 points in 46 games in 2023-24. With his low offensive output last season and his horrid -27 +/- rating, there probably aren't going to be too many suitors lining up to sign him.
Labanc has had a fairly productive past for an undrafted forward, topping double digits in goals 5 times in his NHL career. At 28 years old, he could be looking for a golden opportunity to ink a PTO in training camp in hopes of parlaying that into an NHL contract.
Speaking of 28-year-olds who are coming off of a down year, Dominik Kubalik is another scoring forward on a bad team who may be interested in a change of scenery. Kubalik produced just 15 points in Ottawa last season, but 11 of those points happened to be goals. He also happens to have 20 and 30-goal seasons under his belt in the NHL.
Kubalik is a player who might well find a deal somewhere this summer, but if he does go unsigned, a PTO in Toronto may present an intriguing opportunity for the Czech forward to come into a powerful offense and contribute in a meaningful way in the bottom six with the potential for some top-6 contributions in the event of an injury. There are some rumours kicking around, though, that Kubalik may opt to return to Europe.
36-year-old Cal Clutterbuck may be a little long in the tooth, but he was a valuable role player for the New York Islanders for a lot of years and could bring a wealth of playoff experience to a Maple Leafs team who is looking to go far in the postseason.
The Welland, Ontario native notched 7 goals and 19 points for the Isles last season and has played 1,064 regular season NHL games and an additional 81 career playoff games. He also happens to have a lot of experience on the penalty kill, which could be of great benefit to the Leafs.
With approximately 2 months to go until training camps open up, there's still plenty of time for any or all of these players to ink new deals elsewhere, but if they're still UFA's at the start of September, I wouldn't be shocked to see any of Labanc, Kubalik or Clutterbuck land a PTO in Toronto.
Source for free agent info: PuckPedia
Remaining free agents
| POLL | ||
JUILLET 21 | 495 ANSWERS Potential PTO candidates for the Toronto Maple Leafs If none of these players end up finding a contract, would you like to see any of them sign a PTO with the Leafs this fall? | ||
| Dominik Kubalik | 89 | 18 % |
| Cal Clutterbuck | 190 | 38.4 % |
| Kevin Labanc | 25 | 5.1 % |
| None of the above | 191 | 38.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
