Toronto-born Jeff Skinner signing with the Leafs seems likely after his buyout

This one is an absolute shocker and doesn't happen if Skinner wasn't making $9M per season, but word on the street is that the Buffalo Sabres will exercise a buyout option on 32-year-old Jeff Skinner this week.

Skinner has been a goal scoring machine over the past few years, having scored 24 goals in 2023-24, 35 goals in 2022-23, and 33 goals in 2021-22 for the Buffalo Sabres. However, defense isn't exactly his strong suit, so pairing him with a defensive-minded forward or two would probably be ideal.

While we await official confirmation that there is mutual interest between the Maple Leafs and the Toronto-born Skinner, his buyout structure will be as follows. Details courtesy of PuckPedia:

Year 1: $1.44M
Year 2: $4.44M
Year 3: $6.44M
Years 4, 5 and 6: $2.44M

Skinner at $9M is not good value. Skinner at a more reasonable cap hit, however, is a different story.

The fit between Skinner and the Leafs is undeniable. Last year, it became obvious that some additional scoring outside of the Core 4 was needed. Skinner could certainly provide that and with his hometown club just up the road from his second home in Buffalo, Toronto could be an appealing destination for the veteran winger.

Source: PuckPedia
Jeff Skinner buyout details